Simple and Clean
by Shinigami Akumu
Summary: Kairi washes up on the island, interrupting a friendship that was busy blossoming into more, but getting her home isn't easy. Sora struggles between what he thinks he should do, and what feels right. In the end, what will he choose? RxS
1. The 1st Day

Hello everybody! This is my first Kingdom Hearts fanfiction, and I hope you'll like it. I'm in love with Kingdom Hearts II, so it was inevitable that I would dip my toes into writing for it eventually. This is Simple and Clean, taking place during the first game. The already planned sequel will be My Sanctuary, which will be the second game. Enjoy!

DISCLAIMER: I obviously don't own Kingdom Hearts** and wouldn't be wasting my time here if I did. For idiots like "black beauty", who DID waste my time the other day, this fic is rated M. That means, by even clicking on it, you hereby say "Yes, I can handle anything that could be contained under this rating." Because I will not sit here, wasting my time with this GIANT warning telling you of everything to watch out for/be aware of, thereby giving away some of my plot, nor listen to you whine. Do REAL books have giant warnings about every little thing? No. Don't like that? Then LEAVE. _Now_. For those who CAN handle it, read on!**

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Simple and Clean

_Chapter One: The 1st Day_

It was another one of those many occasions when Sora found his best friend lazing about under the shade of the paopu tree, seemingly deep in thought. Riku sat up at his arrival, but neither said anything as Sora took a seat, their shoulders brushing briefly. They watched together as the sun came closer and closer to setting.

"Hey, Riku…what are you always thinking about out here, anyway?"

The silver haired teen answered this with a question of his own. "Do you think there's something else out there, Sora?"

"Huh?"

"Something besides these boring islands. If there is…then I want to go."

The brunette ate the idea up instantly, giving a big smile. "Me, too! How cool would it be to sail out and find a new world?"

"You'll do it, then? You'll come with me, Sora?"

"You bet!"

It was then, when Riku gave a small smile, that Sora spotted something on the beach behind him. "What's wrong?"

Sora squinted into the last of the day's light. "There's something…_someone_ on the beach!"

"_Someone_?" Riku turned to have a look, but by then, his best friend had already taken off for the small form at a run. "Sora!"

The brunette dropped to his knees and pulled the girl into his lap. Her blue eyes fluttered open slowly and she got one good look at her rescuer before they slid closed again. "H-Hey! Wake up!"

Riku frowned at his side. "We better hurry and get her to the clinic on the main island."

"Right."

Together, they hauled her to their small boats. "Here, Sora. Put her in my boat, and I'll row yours while you hold onto it-we'll just pull it along."

Sora nodded. "Okay."

* * *

The sun was completely set by the time they were done at the hospital. The girl would be spending the night there, hopefully to awaken the next morning. They strolled down the steps outside casually, until Sora remembered. 

"Oh no! I missed dinner!" His shoulders slumped as he bowed his head in shame. "Mom's going to kill me…"

Riku stuffed his hands into his pockets, frowning into the chilly night air. "Mind if I join you? I…don't feel like going home tonight."

Sora didn't think twice before nodding in approval. He knew Riku's parents weren't the kindest of people, but the silver haired boy would say no more than that. Sora had gotten a glimpse of them a couple times, but had never met them-Riku always insisted on going to the other's house, instead. "Uh…oh! My mom washed the stuff you left last time, so…we don't even have to stop at your house, I guess."

"That's good." And he started walking.

Sora jogged to catch up. "But…won't they be worried if they don't know where you are?"

"You ask that every single time, Sora…and like every time, I'm going to give you the same answer: they won't even know I'm gone."

"That's what you always say, but…"

"But you're not sure." He finished for the brunette. "Maybe someday I'll take you there, and you can ask them for yourself." Riku gave a hollow laugh. "Come on, Sora. I'll race you. Loser does the dishes before bed."

"Alright, you asked for it!" Races were the one thing Sora was confident about beating his best friend at. At the count of three, they sprinted for Sora's house.

* * *

They arrived, panting and tired. Riku hadn't realized Sora's house was quite _that_ far from the hospital. If he had, he probably wouldn't have even made the challenge in the first place, but it had been a good subject changer. Sora had won by merely a foot, and was about to gloat when his mother flung the front door open, almost smacking both boys in the nose. "Sora! How many times do I have to tell you not to miss dinner? Is it really that difficult?" She eyed the other boy. "And Riku, you're _supposed_ to be the responsible one, aren't you?" She sighed lightly. "Oh, my boys are such a hassle! You have approximately 30 seconds to wash up before I put away the food." She loved them both like sons-Riku practically lived there half the time-but _sometimes_… 

"But, mom! A girl washed up on the beach, and-"

"Not listening, dear! Tell me about it at dinner-if you can make it there. The clock is ticking!"

The boys barely glanced at each other before taking off to the bathroom, fighting playfully as they both tried to squeeze in at once.

"Move it, Riku! I was here first!"

"Forget it, Sora! There's no way _I'm_ missing dinner!" Even though they both knew very well that his mother wouldn't allow them to go hungry.

The bathroom door was shut in Sora's face. "Hey! No fair!" He banged on it a few times. "Rikuuuu…"

The door reopened. "What, you actually thought I'd leave you to starve?" He pulled the other in before he got a chance to answer.

At the table, Sora told his mother of the girl who made him late. "She had red hair and these really blue eyes…but I've never seen her before."

"Hmm…well, don't worry, dears. I'll find out what I can tomorrow. And look at that! You two must have been _starving_ to have finished this quickly. Well, there's no dessert for late boys-washed up girl or not." She starting clearing away the dishes.

Sora nudged Riku, gently reminding him of their agreement. The older boy stood. "I'll take care of the dishes."

But Sora's mother waved it off. "Nonsense. You boys need your rest-I'm sure there's plenty of adventures to be had."

_Not really…_ "It's the least I can do, in return for you letting me stay."

"Oh, for Pete's sake!" She placed the dishes in the sink and turned to face him, hands on her hips. "You do this to me every time! Having you over is a _joy_-most of the time-so there's no need to repay me."

"But I-"

"Stay out of trouble, keep an eye on my Sora, and that's all the help I need." She smiled and shooed them out of the room. "Don't forget to brush your teeth first! And change into your pajamas! I'll have no sand stuck in the sheets! Oh, dear-I keep forgetting to pick you up a toothbrush, Riku!"

The pair stopped half way down the hall, and Riku tried to protest her spending more money on him. "That's really not a problem-"

"Yes, yes, just use Sora's again tonight. I'll write it down this time, so I won't forget. Sweet dreams, dears! Try not to kick each other in your sleep! We don't need more bruises…"

"Goodnight, mom!" They both answered before giving each other strange looks, and falling into a fit of laughter.

Sora picked up the set of clean clothes that laid in his dresser drawer-a special drawer he kept just for Riku's things. "Here, you can go first."

"Alright." And with that, he turned and headed for the bathroom.

But Sora didn't need any real thanks. His friend had his own ways of showing how grateful he was, and that was good enough. Reaching under a couple of his shirts, Sora pulled out a picture of himself and Riku, when they were a bit younger, wrestling in the sand over the last unbroken wood sword. His best friend had been a lot more open back then, and not so unhappy. _I kind of miss…how things used to be._ "Why does everything always have to change…?"

"Really now, Sora-this place is boring enough as it is."

The brunette jumped, dropping the picture back into the drawer and closing it quickly. _How much time passed, just now…? _"I-I don't think it's so bad. I mean, we have family and friends here-Tidus, Selphie, Wakka-"

"But you already agreed to come with me, right? You're not backing out on this-are you, Sora?"

"No, no! I just meant, um…"

"It's your turn." _Strange to have closed the drawer without getting your clothes out first._

"Oh, right." Sora was secretly glad for the save. And then Riku watched him open a _different_ drawer, and remove his pjs before going off to the bathroom.

Curiosity getting the best of him, Riku opened that top drawer. _Well, what have we got here…?_ He picked up the photograph and examined it for a moment. _But why hide this? He could put it in a fame and hang it on his wall for all I care._ Putting things back as he found them, he closed the draw up again. _That doesn't make any sense…not that I'm going to bother asking him about it. _Then he briefly wondered if it was strange to go to brush your teeth, only for your toothbrush to already be wet-but he figured Sora was used to it by now.

It wasn't long before said boy came back, his hair even more wild than when he'd left. Sora began a yawn, only to stop in the middle of it and look over at his best friend. "Hey, Riku…what's it like, being with someone?"

The silver haired boy quirked a brow. "What, like dating someone? How should I know?"

"You've never…?"

"With _who_, Sora? Selphie?"

"Well…"

"You're thinking about that new girl that was washed up on the shore today." Riku frowned.

_Man…always right on the nose._ "N-No! I just…"

"Everyone knows _everyone_ around here. I've never seen her before. She has to have come from another world, Sora! This means that there _is_ something else out there. She'll want to go home, right? She'll be our ticket out of here."

"But, Riku! You can't just use her like that!"

"Why not? We'd be taking her home, so what's the big deal?"

"Well…" Sora flopped back onto the bed. "I don't know."

Riku took a seat next to him. "You don't want her to leave-is that it? She doesn't belong here, Sora. If you washed up somewhere else one day, you'd want them to bring you back here, wouldn't you?"

"I…"

"Or would you just explore and make new friends?" He crossed his arms. "Forget about everyone that was important to you?"

"Wha-no! What are you talking about, Riku? I would never do that!" Then there was a short silence. "But…isn't that what we're going to be doing, anyway? Leaving to see new places, and make new friends? Never coming back-"

"I didn't say that we're never coming back." _There's really only one person on this prison island that I care about, anyway…and he'll be coming with me. So who cares?_

"Well, we…we should think about this more, before we just go off. What if we can never find our way back?"

"That's just a chance we'll have to take." There was silence again, for a time. "So, you want to know what it's like to be with someone."

Sora blushed, having never really talked about the topic before, even with his best friend. "Yeah, but…you don't know anything either, right? So…"

"Then why don't we find out?"

Sora sat up on his elbows. "What? How?"

"Getting some girl is kind of a hassle…so let's try it out, here, without all the emotional baggage."

"…huh?"

"You and me, Sora. Free experience and no hard feelings."

"But, Riku…we're both guys-"

"And? It's not leaving this room, so what does it matter?"

Sora tried to process it in his quickly overloading brain. "It's…it's just a kiss, right?"

"Right." _Unless you want more-just extra experience for us._

"Well…then I guess…I mean, I _guess_ it's okay…"

As soon as he okayed it, he found his best friend's face close to his, and he fell back, from being on his elbows, in surprise. "R-Riku!"

"What? You wanted this, didn't you?"

"Y-Yeah…"

Riku got comfortable on top of the smaller boy before leaning down. They each stared into pools of blue for a moment, before he brushed his lips against Sora's gently. The brunette's eyes fluttered closed, and the older teen smirked as he kissed the other fully.

It was innocent, at first, but pleasure quickly overtook common sense. Riku poked his tongue against Sora's soft lips, begging entrance. After a moment of hesitation, the shorter boy opened up for him. There was no battle for dominance-Sora quickly gave in. The deeper the kiss became, the more Riku found that he wanted to take things further.

When his hand slipped under Sora's shirt and started feeling around, the younger boy's tensing up went unnoticed. However, Riku went a little too far for Sora's taste when he brushed over a nipple with his thumb. It gave the brunette a jolt that sent him scrambling backwards, eventually to make them both fall off the bed.

"Oof!"

"S-Sorry, Riku! I just-"

"…maybe it's time to sleep."

Sora smiled sheepishly. "Sorry…"

"It's fine." Riku stood and offered his hand to help Sora up. "I said only a kiss, anyway…I guess I had it coming."

Sora blushed brightly and took the offered hand. "It…felt good, though."

_What do I say to that?_ "Well, I always was the talented one."

The younger scowled at his best friend, hating to be bested. "Oh _yeah_? Well, next time, I'm totally going to be better than you!"

Riku quirked a brow. "Next time?"

Sora faltered and blushed. _Oh no! I didn't even think before I said that! It just seemed…so much like all our other rivalries-for a second, anyway._ "I-uh…that is…"

While his gaze was to the ground and no attention was being paid, Riku snuck up behind him, catching him in a loose hold before whispering darkly in Sora's ear. "If you want to go again, I have no complaints."

The brunette shivered pleasantly. "N-No! Just…I was…"

"You could never win against me, anyway."

"_What_?" The need to win against, or at least be equal to, Riku outweighed any other thoughts in his mind-it always had. "Fine! Tomorrow night, then. I'll show _you_."

He smirked and let go, speaking normally again. "You always were a sore loser, Sora."

"And you're not?"

"I can accept defeat gracefully."

Sora slumped his shoulders, giving up for the night with a yawn. "I'll beat you…"

He managed a small laugh. "I'm sure you will."

With another sleepy glare, Sora flicked off the lights and climbed into bed, refusing to speak to his best friend, who kept making fun of him. _I wish I could be that confident all the time…no wonder my mom likes you. You're like the perfect son or something-so what's the deal with your parents? Shouldn't they be proud of you?_

Riku had climbed in next to him and was thinking as well-except he wasn't about to brain-overload and fall asleep like Sora. _That was really…amazing. There isn't much choice in girls on this sand prison anyway. Maybe I **am** gay…but if that's true…_ He looked over at Sora's sleeping form, who was unconsciously curled up against him. _…then there's only one person for me._

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That's it for the first chapter. Review! 


	2. The 2nd Day

Hello again! I'm just submitting the three chapters I have all together and then I'll be submitting seperately. BUT that doesn't mean I don't want you to review each one! Cause I do!

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Chapter Two: The 2nd Day_

"Oh, aren't you two adorable, all snuggled up like that-just like when you were younger! Silly boys never grow up, hm?"

"Nuuuh?" Sora cracked an eye open, seeing the navy blue of Riku's sleep shirt, and jumped-nearly falling off the bed, and then grabbing onto that same shirt for dear life. He'd had nightmares of his mother finding out what they did.

Riku, who was just starting to wake up, himself, was rudely jerked into reality. "Sora! Ugh-let go! Are you trying to _choke_ me?" He pried desperate fingers loose, and the brunette found himself sprawled on the floor.

"Ow! Rikuuu…you're such an asshole…" And that's when he was kindly whacked by the spatula of doom. "Owww! Wha-"

"Watch your language, young man! I'll have none of that here!" She narrowed her eyes as they landed on the older boy who was still sitting on the bed. "Riku, did you teach him such horrible things?"

"Me?" Riku inquired innocently. "No way."

Sora's eyes nearly popped out of his head. _You were saying them when we were 10! _"But-"

"Very funny, I know how you sneaky teenagers work. You think I didn't hear those nasty little words popping out all these years? No ice cream on your pancakes today!"

Riku tried his best to look heartbroken, and Sora just had to ask "What about me?"

"Be lucky I'm not washing your mouth out with soap!"

"B-But…" Sora _really_ _was_ heartbroken.

"Now, up with you! I'm back from a meeting, and I have news! Your breakfasts are getting cold."

"Is-"

"No, your breakfast was not the news."

_Wow…why are moms psychic? _As soon as she walked out, Sora sighed. "Nice going, Riku."

"Hey, don't look at me." He stood. "Smart move, swearing with her in the room." He went into 'his' drawer, digging through it for his usual attire.

The brunette jumped up. "You're the one who taught me in the first place! You swear more than I ever do!"

"So? There's always a time and a place, Sora. You just have a knack for getting caught." He ruffled the shorter boy's hair and headed for the bathroom.

Sora stuck his head out the door and called down the hallway. "Funny, every time I get caught, it has something to do with _you_!"

The silver haired boy waved it off and closed the bathroom door.

The brunette sighed again and opened the drawer. Finding the picture on top as he'd left it, he stashed it once again before picking out his clothes, mumbling to himself all the while. "Like the time when we were kids and set that trap to catch a wild animal…Wakka stepped into it and got hurt…and of course, I couldn't run as fast-so you left me behind! What kind of guy leaves his _best friend _behind?" _A guy who doesn't want to get caught. _His mind logically answered. Sora's shoulders slumped. "I always take the fall for you, don't I, Mr. Perfect?"

"_Always_? Don't you think you're exaggerating a little, there, Sora? You took me down with you today-I'd say that more than makes up for something that happened when you were seven."

"Didn't scare me-I heard you coming."

_Like that was my goal? _Riku crossed his arms. "Hurry up, I want to know what news your mom has."

"Yeah, yeah…"

* * *

"Well! I was at the town hall this morning-us adults were called to an emergency meeting. Turns out it was about the new girl that you two brought in yesterday."

Riku glanced at Sora, waiting for a reaction. The brunette stilled for a moment before stuffing his face again. _Hmm…_

"Her name is Kairi…but she doesn't know who her parents are, much less where she came from. It's like she's lost all memory! So, the meeting was to discuss who would take her in. I offered, but only on the account that it'd be alright with you, Sora."

The older nearly choked on his pancakes. _She doesn't know where she came from…there goes our ticket out of here. _"Shouldn't you leave her to someone that _doesn't_ already have kids?" _Or someone who has a daughter, perhaps?_

"Oh, it's just you and Sora. Besides, the mayor said he would be giving extra money and things to whoever takes on the task-so it's not like she'll be costing me anything.

Riku looked over at his best friend, pleading silently in his mind. _Say no, say no…_

Sora looked up at the ceiling thoughtfully. "Well, I guess it'd be okay…"

_Dammit. _"He should meet her first, though." He protested.

"_I_ met her already. She's such a dear-so kind and soft spoken." There was a pause of silence. "Well, that settles it, then! You two come with me to the town hall to meet her and then take her to the play island while I fix her up a room.

"A room _where_?" Riku asked, filling with dread.

"Sora's game systems and things will just have to go in his room."

"In that cramped space? But-"

"Riku!" She stood to gather the dishes. "What's into you this morning? You've had no problem with Selphie and the others all these years-this should be no different. The only change is where she'll be staying. I expect you to treat her kindly. Now, brush your teeth, we leave in five minutes."

As soon as her back was turned, Riku grabbed Sora's hand, pulling him down the hallway and into the bathroom. Firmly shutting the door behind them, he pushed the brunette up against the closest wall and kissed him fiercely, putting all of his immense frustration into it.

It wasn't long before Sora struggled to push him away. "R-Riku! What are you _doing_?"

The silver haired boy turned away from him. "…nothing." And then he proceeded to brush his teeth. _What **am** I doing…? But then…we wouldn't be fooling around tonight, anyway, would we?_ _Not with **her** here._

Sora joined him a moment later, but by then he was finished, and walked out wordlessly. "…Riku…"

_Forget it, Sora. You couldn't possibly understand…how I'm feeling._

* * *

"This is Sora, and this is Riku. Boys, this is Kairi."

The red head nearly bowed down. "I'm so glad to meet you, and very thankful that I'll be able to stay in your home!"

"Oh, not at all." Sora's mother smiled.

Right away, she seemed to have a fascination with how shiny Riku's hair was in the midday sun. "_Silver_ hair!" She looked up at the older woman. "Are they brothers?"

"Oh, _goodness_, no. If they were, I don't know what I'd do! Riku belongs to someone else, but he stays over a lot, so don't let it bother you, dear."

Riku tried not to frown. _Don't let it **bother** you?_

"Well, now. These two will take you to the play island-that's where you washed up."

Kairi's eyes sparkled. "You have a _whole_ island, just for _playing_?"

"Well, sure. We'll get you set up with your own boat in a few days. In the meantime, these little rascals will give you a grand tour and show you the ropes. If they do anything unforgivable, come and let me know right away. Off with you all, now! Go on, shoo!" And she scooted them off, turning to speak with the mayor before going about her own business-mainly the making of Kairi's room.

Riku felt like he was made of lead-each depressing step bringing him closer and closer to a doomed destiny he couldn't control. And he _hated_ not having control over his own life. _Sora's going to marry Kairi someday…and I'm going to die alone on this desert prison…as she happily helps him forget all about me._

"Riku!"

He turned at the sound of his name. "What?"

Sora nearly frowned. "Weren't you listening?"

"No." He replied truthfully, hoping to get a good reaction out of the other.

The brunette pouted, but that was about all, before repeating himself. "I _said_, which boat should she go in?"

"Mine." He answered quickly before even giving it any thought. _I won't let you have Sora. But what can I do?_

* * *

The trip there seemed to take an eternity. Kairi sat politely silent, staring out at the ocean, while Riku tried to come up with a good enough plan. _If I can get her fascinated with me…she won't go after Sora, right? Girls keep their stupid little crushes for a long time-that's what Selphie says. So, make her fall for me to keep her at bay until I can either get **her** out of here, or get out of here, myself, with **him**. She doesn't know where her home is? I'll **find** it._ "We're almost there." He offered up a charming smile that got her to smile in return.

"Okay!"

_Maybe living with Sora will discourage her from wanting to be with him, too…_ "School's out for the summer right now…otherwise we're on the main island until later in the day."

"There's a school? Is the main island big?"

"Very. If you want, I could…show you around when we go back." _Ugh._

"Thanks, Riku. That would be great!"

He flashed another killer smile before jumping out of the boat and wading through the shallow water, tying it up on the dock. Sora, being the smaller of the two, took a moment longer to arrive, before coming in beside them. Riku swung himself up onto the dock and stood, offering his hand to Kairi, who he pulled up to stand by him. He was tempted to reach down to Sora, but he had to make it seem like she was receiving special treatment.

That backfired, however, when she offered her hand to the small brunette, but failed to pull him up-so Riku had to, anyway. _So much for that._

Sora was blushing like mad. "So, uh…what should we do?"

"…" Riku fell silent right along with him. Having been roughhousing all their lives, neither knew what games delicate girls liked to play. Selphie wasn't exactly delicate, but she also enjoyed a mixture of things, so it was alright.

Kairi broke the silence. "What about hide and seek?"

_What, are we ten again? Let's play 'Drop the new girl off with Selphie and do what we want'. _"Sounds fine…the island's more than big enough."

Sora nodded and Kairi hid her hands behind her back shyly. "I don't know this place, so it would be really hard if I was 'it'…why don't you be 'it', Riku?"

_Fantastic._ "Alright. I'm coming for you guys on the count of fifty."

And off they ran.

* * *

Finding them was a cinch. Kairi was the easiest, but Riku decided to find her last just to make her feel good. Now it was round two and Sora was 'it'. Riku passed her with a smile, until he saw where she was headed: the secret place. Everyone around knew that that place belonged to Riku and Sora-they'd discovered it, after all. _How do you politely tell someone, who doesn't know any better, to get the fuck out of your space, without making them cry?_ But Sora's countdown was coming to a close, and he was forced to jump into some bushes.

Kairi stepped in cautiously, even though it wasn't very dark. She quickly realized the mistake in her choice of hiding spot when she saw drawings all over the walls. This meant that kids had been going in there for some time. Upon closer inspection, she noticed that, due to initials, all of the artwork belong to Sora and Riku. Feeling very much a part of the family already, and so sure the kind boys wouldn't mind, she picked up a rock, sitting down to contribute to the wall work.

Riku's hiding spot was bad-even he knew it, and Sora's disappointed look upon finding him confirmed it. Giving subtle hints to the brunette, they found themselves going into the secret place. Kairi was there, as the older had said. She had just finished drawing Sora and was about to add Riku when they had waltzed in.

Forgetting the drawing, she jumped up. "You found me! I hope you don't mind that I came in here…"

Sora smiled. "It's okay. You can come in here whenever you want. Right, Riku?"

He tried so hard to force a smile, too. "Right." But he had seen _it_. _This is **our** place! And you just met him!_

Riku was sick of it all after three more games, and retreated to his paopu island-even if it wasn't _actually_ his, he was always there and could beat any other kid who tried to take it over. Sure, he knew the legend of the paopu fruit, and that was one of the reasons he enjoyed the tree so much. He'd always thought about sharing one with his best friend, to assure that they would never forget each other, but found it to be too girly of a concept-that and he was just too embarrassed to ask. He had kind of hoped that the dense brunette would think of it sooner or later, but that had yet to happen.

He watched as Kairi collected seashells, with Sora's help. They looked rather happy, and that only served to further darken Riku's mood. The phrase 'left out' came to mind, and a horrible feeling in the pit of his stomach told him that this was only the beginning of his lonely misery.

Thinking far too much to have noticed anything, Riku jumped a little when they showed up next to him, out of the blue.

"Look, Riku! I found these three shells-and they look exactly the same! So, let's each take one." She passed one to each boy and smiled. "Now the three of us will never be apart!"

Riku stared down at the small red and white shell. _Kind of like a paopu fruit. But I…don't want to share **my** destiny with **you**. _

She gasped. "Oh! Sora, look! It's a blue one! Let's get it!" She went off, and Sora shot Riku a 'not coming?' look before going after her.

_Well, it's not like she invited **me** to follow along._ He closed his fist around the shell. Squeezing more tightly than he had thought, while they laughed and talked, the little shell shattered into a hundred tiny pieces, piercing the skin of his palm. Sticky blood oozed between his fingers and dripped into the sand. Regaining control and composure, he plucked the pieces out before carelessly wiping the crimson on his dark pants.

They came back about then, blue shell in hand. Riku tried a smile. "We should start heading back, if you want that tour before sundown."

"Oh, that's right!" She glanced at Sora, and then back at Riku. "Sora's coming, too, right?"

_Dammit._ "Of course."

"Well, what are we waiting for? I'll race you back to the boats!" The three lined up on the dock. "Ready…" She jumped off, stumbling, and kept going.

"Hey!" Sora took off after her, Riku following.

Always following.

* * *

The tour was _long, _and _boring_. They introduced her to everyone they met, going around nearly the whole town before the sun had set. In the peaceful quiet of the night, they walked to Sora's house together.

"My mom should be finished with your room by now, so…you won't have to sleep on the couch or anything."

Kairi looked worried. "I hope it's all not too much trouble."

"For my mom? No way. She _enjoys_ that kind of stuff."

She giggled. "That's good." Then she paused. "Hey, what do you say that, tomorrow, we all get some ice cream together?"

Sora raised his arms up behind his head in his 'casually nervous' pose. "Sounds good to me. Riku?"

"I could go for some ice cream." _You have this 'together' complex, don't you, Kairi?_

Reaching the house, they stepped inside and were assaulted with his mother's happiness. "Oh, you're back already! I just finished! Now, you boys go wash up for supper, while I take Kairi on a mini-tour and show her the room." With that said, she took Kairi's hand and lead her through the living room.

The boys took the hallway and washed up silently…at first, anyway.

"Hey, Riku…" Sora handed his best friend a wash cloth.

"What?"

"What do you think? I mean, about Kairi?" He wet the red cloth before scrubbing the day's sweat off his face, which would have to do until his shower after dinner.

"She's…great." He followed the same routine with his blue cloth.

"C'mon, that's it? Just great?" Sora moved onto washing the dirt and sand off his hands and arms.

_What will happen if I tell you what I **really** think? I've never had to worry about this kind of thing before…I could always tell you everything, even if I didn't choose to. Just knowing I could was enough for me. But now…what can I **do** now?_ "I haven't really formed an opinion of her yet."

"Rikuuuu…c'mon, tell me the truth!"

"And it never crossed your mind that what I just told you could be the truth?"

"Mm…" Sora paused and seemed to think it over. "….nope! Now, let's hear it!"

"I have nothing else to tell you, Sora." Finished, he stepped out the door.

"You _like_ her, don't you?"

"_What_?" Riku whipped around and scowled. _I like **you**, is that so hard to believe?_

"What do you mean 'what'? You've only been smiling at her like crazy all day!"

The older teen frowned. "That's not…" _Ugh, idiot! I forgot to think about what **you'd** think of it all. Why did you have to notice? Of all the times to decide to be perceptive…_ "…I was just trying to make her feel welcome." He tried lamely.

"Uh huh." Sora didn't buy it. "She'll figure out how you really are eventually, so there's no point in a charade, right?"

"What's _that_ supposed to mean?" Riku snapped, and immediately regretted it at the hurt look on Sora's face. But before the brunette could explain himself, dinner called.

"Riku! Sora! What's taking so long? Come and sit down!"

"…Riku, I-"

"…let's go." The silver haired boy turned and headed down the hall, towards the dining room.

* * *

The dinner was as long and boring as the tour had been, with Sora's mother filling most of the silence with a conversation with Kairi-telling her everything she could think of that the girl should know. Sora seemed to sulk while Riku sat in a dark silence. There was extra dessert that night, which the boys ate to please the one who'd worked hard to make it; they weren't really very hungry anymore.

"Oh, goodness…with all the excitement, I forgot to pick up your toothbrush _again_, Riku. And I'm afraid that means I didn't get one for Kairi, either. Well, we're all a family now-you don't mind, do you, Sora, dear?"

He shook his head 'no', and Riku suppressed a snicker. _Of course he's not going to say no. You'd end up forcing him into it somehow anyway._

The three headed off to the bathroom, taking turns. Because it was polite, Sora let Kairi go first. She wished them both a good night with sweet dreams and disappeared to her new room.

Sora was about to brush his teeth next when Riku snatched it out of his hands. "Hey! What's that for?"

_What am I doing…? It's not like he'll get her germs off the toothbrush as if they'd kissed. _He shrugged and brushed. _Am I just…overreacting? What if I'm blowing this whole thing out of proportion? And for what…? For someone…who will never feel the same? I may have laid claim to your first kiss, but…it's not like I can stake my name on anything else._

Sora pouted and took his turn, writing it off to be Riku still being angry at him, said boy now waiting for him in the doorway. When they reached his room, the brunette's mouth fell open. "Wha-wha…"

"…looks like your mom didn't have time to set it up for you."

All of Sora's game systems, games, movies, and his TV-things that had originally made up a tiny game room-laid everywhere. "Oh no…"

"Well, I'll just be changing and hitting the couch."

"Rikuuuu!" The brunette latched onto his arm, exactly the reaction the other was hoping for. "You have to help me!"

"_Have_ to?"

"Please?"

He easily gave in. "Fine."

Sora breathed a sigh of relief. "Let's start with the TV…"

* * *

Roughly a half hour later, they'd managed to accommodate everything and organize all of the movies and games alphabetically by title. Sora dug for his pajamas. "All we're missing is a fridge and we could practically _live_ in here!"

"Mm." The other agreed, easily finding his own pjs.

"I call shower first!" He tried for a reaction, as they usually fought over it.

"Whatever." Riku flopped onto the bed, seemingly ready to wait the fifteen minutes it would take his friend.

"Riku-"

"Sorry for intruding."

Sora blinked. "What…?"

"Your new family. You were supposed to be getting to know her tonight."

"Well, yeah, but-"

"I should just go home." Riku sat up suddenly, a frown on his face.

Sora had never before heard Riku refer to his house as his _home_ without being sarcastic. "But this…this _is_ your home…"

"No." He stood and walked to the dresser, putting his clothes away. "This is your home, Sora. And your mother's. And _Kairi's_."

"And _yours_! Don't go, Riku…why are you mad at me? What'd I do?"

_Something you wouldn't understand._ "I should go…" He repeated, instead.

"C'mon…" Sora grabbed his hand. "What's up with you today?"

Riku didn't know whether to squeeze the smaller hand gently or pull away-so he settled for doing nothing. "I don't know…"

"I'll let you have the shower first and everything! Just…don't go, okay?"

_Why do you sound like…you actually need me?_ "…okay."

Sora seemed relived. "Shower's waiting for you, then."

Riku put on a smirk. "You can go-you called it first."

"You're not going to leave while I'm gone?" Sora narrowed his eyes suspiciously.

"No, I'm not."

"Promise?"

"I promise, Sora. Alright? Now get going. I _do_ want to sleep eventually."

The younger teen grinned. "Got it." And took off for the bathroom.

Riku was bored for the time until Sora returned. But when he, himself, came back, ready for sleep…he found Sora had beaten him to it. The brunette was curled up on his side, and had fallen asleep waiting for the other. Riku flicked off the light and got in beside the peaceful brunette, wrapping his arms around the other contently before drifting off to sleep.


	3. The 3rd Day

Hi yet again! Here's chapter 3 and then the rest will come more slowly. Review and enjoy! I'll have more to say on the next chapter, I'm sure.

_

* * *

Chapter Three: The 3rd Day_

The next morning, Sora awoke to bright aqua. He would have jumped back, if Riku hadn't been holding onto him. They watched each other for a long time, sleepily, before leaning closer. It was almost like there was an invisible magnetic force in beautiful pools of blue, drawing them together. Before their lips could touch, the door opened, breaking the spell, and they broke apart.

Kairi wanted to ask 'Did I…interrupt something?' but settled for "Your mom sent me to wake you both up…breakfast is almost ready." She smiled.

Riku tried to smile back instead of smirk. "Got it. We'll be there in a minute."

She nodded and sent a strange look Sora's way before disappearing back out the door.

"Rikuuuu, she almost saw us!"

"And?" _Maybe all I have to do is show her that Sora's mine? But then…there's always the problem of getting him to actually **be** mine, first._

The brunette pouted. "You said it's staying between us-and that it was just that one night…"

"I didn't see you struggling to pull away."

The younger blushed slightly and turned away, getting out of the bed. "I wasn't really awake yet…that's all."

"Mmhmm."

"L-Let's go eat! I bet mom made something really good today."

Riku noted his use of 'mom' as opposed to 'my mom', but chose to ignore it. It often happened like that, and he often felt she was sort of a replacement of his own-who didn't care for him in the least. "Yeah." But now, everything was upside down. From her comment the day before, he gathered that he was really just a nuisance that she tolerated for Sora's sake, whom she adored. Now that Kairi was in the mix, he was merely a third wheel. And there was always that whole liking Sora as more-than-a-friend problem. _Is there really no place for me now?_

Breakfast turned out to be an islander dish of sorts with much fruit. Riku hadn't intended to eat anything, suddenly feeling like he was creating debt for himself, but the strawberries were calling to him. He had always had a thing for the sweet, yet bitter, red fruit-Sora happened to smell of something a bit more tropical, but he didn't mind; it was delicious all the same. _Great, now I'm thinking like I would want to eat him. 'Here, Sora! Hop into my breakfast, please. I have a feeling you'll go very well with the cantaloupe.'_ Suppressing a snicker, he popped another strawberry into his mouth and glanced about to see what the rest of them had been doing while he enjoyed the deranged fantasies that seemed to happen without his consent.

Sora yawned, about ready to fall asleep and use his fruit as a nice, squishy pillow. He would close his eyes half way, tip forward ever so slightly, then snap back into reality with wide sky orbs and eat a few more bites. It was amusing, to say the least. Apparently, losing even an hour of sleep was enough to wipe the poor brunette out. Nothing a nice, lazy afternoon under the paopu tree couldn't fix.

"You three only have a few weeks left of summer-better make the most of it, hm?"

_Oh…that's right. Three._ And Kairi didn't look like she'd be ready to take a nap for quite some time.

* * *

Upon their arrival to the play island, Selphie immediately pulled Kairi aside for some 'serious' girl talk. While Sora stood not too far off from them patiently, Riku continued his short and dreary trek to _his_ paopu island. After a moment, Sora jogged to catch up with him, just as he expected.

"Riku…where are you going? I thought…"

"You don't have to wait on her hand and foot, Sora." He stopped on the first wooden plank of the short bridge.

The brunette seemed to grow more uncomfortable. "I know, but…mom probably wants us to stay together-at least until she gets the hang of the place."

"Us?" Riku quirked a brow before shrugging casually. "Sorry, my job description is 'best friend', not 'princess's maid'."

"You're not even going to stick around? Some best friend _you_ are!"

Riku was about to comment, when Kairi decided to show up, all giggled out for the immediate moment. "Hey, guys! What're you talking about over here?"

The silver haired teen was quicker on the draw than his brunette counterpart. "Are you going to tell us what you and Selphie were laughing about?"

The girl blushed, and it nearly made Riku furious, just to imagine what they _possibly_ could have been speaking of. He'd known Selphie for some time-she loved to talk about _romance_ and _boys_, even if the selection 'wasn't very good'. No doubt she'd wanted to know if Kairi had bestowed her affections upon anyone in particular, so she could swear on her non-existent grave never to tell who this 'crush' was. Oh, he was _certain_ that it was something of that nature. Girls, he had decided, could pick a crush in mere moments-while he had known Sora for his whole life and never felt this way till now. He briefly wondered if that meant it was more than a crush, but decided it would be better to dwell on that at another time. "…never mind!" She grinned sheepishly, but he dully noted that she couldn't pull it off nearly as well as the short boy beside her. "Hey, Sora! You said you'd show me the other half of the play island today, right? I can't believe it's so big! Selphie also hinted that there are some special _purple_ seashells over there! Can you _believe_ it? Purple!"

_I'm pretty sure Sora didn't say anything about that to you. _Shifting his weight to the other foot, the old board made a creak, reminding Kairi of his presence.

"Oh, Riku, would you like to come?"

He gave a half-hearted smile-he just didn't have the energy, nor the care, to play along today. "That's alright. I was thinking of taking a short nap-I didn't get enough sleep. I'll be right over there-" He pointed towards the paopu tree. "-if you need anything, let me know."

She smiled. "Okay! Once we're done, we'll come show you what we've found! Have a nice rest, Riku!" That smile brightened and she latched onto Sora's arm, pulling him away as he gave the older a bewildered look.

_What, did you expect me to happily come along, after what you said?_

_"You're not even going to stick around? Some best friend **you** are!"_

He started to walk across the rickety old bridge, easily tuning out the different sounds the ancient planks made under his feet. _…maybe I was being an ass, too, but why shouldn't he suffer for such a stupid decision? If he'd learn to just say 'no' already…_ But that was just the problem with Sora. He wouldn't, _couldn't_ say no. He was too kind hearted. Sure, the little brunette could get pretty mean and nasty, just like everyone else, but generally, he was of a peaceful nature and preferred to try to please everyone, rather than create conflict over how he happened to be feeling at the moment.

Riku was nearly the opposite, he realized, as the truth of the matter materialized in his head: _That's what I like about him._ With a sigh, he laid out on the paopu's trunk, folding his arms behind his head and effectively making a pillow of sorts. _There's something about that girl's smile…something **wrong**. Nobody's **that** kind…nobody smiles **that** much…she just lost her home and all her memories of it-how can she be so happy?_ He huffed. _I guess you can't miss what you don't remember. But still, no normal person would be so-I mean, Sora's the **pinnacle** of happy, and even he isn't-_ A paopu star fruit fell from the tree, smacking Riku right on the nose, and caused him to completely lose his train of thought. "Ow! The hell…" Grabbing the offending fruit, he growled, shaking it around wildly. "Why the hell does Sora have to like Kairi? Why don't you hit _him_ on the head so he'll get the freaking idea? _**Why** is this happening to **me**?_" He was nearly about to squish the fruit under his shoe with furious glee, when he decided on a more suitable punishment for his ignorant prisoner.

The paopu fruit got to play the pillow.

* * *

"Oh, is this one?" Kairi picked up the shell in question and her excitement died again. "Nope…blue." Then the energy gathered once more, as it did every time she saw another possibly purple seashell.

"Hey, Kairi…"

She looked over at her new friend. "Yeah?"

"What do you remember…? I mean, about where you grew up?"

She turned away, frowning in thought. "Nothing."

"Really?" _That means we really can't take her home. I bet Riku's not too happy about that…_

"Really." She tossed the shell aside, looking once more. There was silence for a short time before she spoke again. "Has Riku changed…?"

Sora looked up in surprise. "What…do you mean?"

"I've only known him for a couple days but…he was so kind and happy yesterday. And now, suddenly…"

Sora tried to think of the rights words, or, more precisely, how to arrange them in a way that wouldn't have insulted the older teen if he'd been standing right there. _**I'm** not a very good friend…_ "You…probably shouldn't expect big smiles out of him very much. He-He said he just wanted you to feel...welcome here."

"…oh."

"But he usually isn't like _this_!" He frowned over the hastiness of his own words, as he didn't want it to come off like he was just trying to justify Riku's bad behavior. "He…must be having a bad day." _That **I **created…_

Kairi dipped down, still facing away from him, and took hold of a tiny shell that she was certain had to be purple. "Why are you friends with him?"

Sora was caught off guard and made even more uncomfortable. "I…"

"I'm sorry." She gazed at him and smiled warmly in the afternoon sun that was sure to provide a hefty tan. "I shouldn't have asked that. Forget it."

The brunette lifted his gloved hands defensively. "No, it's okay." A pause. "I guess…well, he was different when we were little, but…we've been best friends since before I can remember. Riku…he's just someone you have to get used to. Once you get to know him, you…you see something different when you look at him. Something you could never see before-like just _knowing_ him…changes something about him that used to bother you before." He blushed a little and rubbed the back of his head. "Uh…sorry. I'm not making any sense."

"Mm…" She looked down as the foamy water washed over her shoes. "I believe you, Sora. And I wanna see it, too." Kairi smiled at a small bug who was attempting to take shelter from the water by sitting on the end of her shoe's lace that laid on the ground after coming undone. "Let's all become best friends, okay?" But before he could answer, the most beautiful shell she'd ever seen was swept onto shore. It was purple with streaks of green and almost appeared to have a golden spot in the shape of a star. "Wow…Sora, look!" She rushed over to him. "Maybe it's good luck! Let's go show Riku!"

He nodded and, together, they made their way back to the paopu island.

* * *

"Aw, look, Sora! He's so much cuter when he's sleeping!"

Sleep-filled pools of aqua just barely popped open to greet the end of the afternoon sun as shadows began to get longer. Quickly noticing the face close to his that wasn't Sora's, he tried to get away. "Ah!" And with a thump he hit the sand, having forgotten where he was.

Kairi giggled. "Did you have a nice nap?"

Riku got to his feet, trying not to scowl as he dusted the sand off. "It was great until a second ago."

Kairi sat down in the middle of the tree's trunk, forcing each boy to sit on either side of her. She held the shell out to Riku. "Look at what we found! Isn't it great?"

He took it in hand, trying to feign interest in the silly shell. "I've never seen one like it before."

"Really? Maybe it is lucky after all!"

"Could be." He handed it back, and for a while, all was silent. The two boys tried to look anywhere but each other, both feeling guilt over something that was really no one's fault at all. Kairi stared up at the last of the day's puffy white clouds, and that's when she finally noticed.

"Hey-what're those?"

Riku looked in the direction of her point, immediately filling with dread. "…it's a paopu fruit. We're sitting on a paopu tree, and that's why this is called the paopu island."

"Ooooh…is it any good?"

Riku shook his head. "I've never had one."

"Really?" Kairi looked confused. "Why not?"

For the first time ever, he hated the story. "…legend goes that if two people share a paopu fruit, their destinies will forever be intertwined."

"Wow!" She was easily fascinated, and stared at the bright yellow star. "We should all share one, then!"

The older teen crossed his arms. "I don't think it works on three people."

"…oh." Her disappointment was obvious, and Riku felt slightly bad about it-just ever-so-slightly. Meanwhile, Sora nudged Kairi and mouthed the words 'bad day'. Nodding in understanding, she smiled again. "Maybe we'll try it another day…couldn't hurt."

"Hn."

They quietly watched the sunset together before starting back to town.

* * *

"So, where can you get ice cream around here? That's what we agreed on before, right? Kairi looked left and right as if she would see anything but houses in that part of town.

Sora dug in his pockets a moment before frowning. "I forgot to get money from my mom…we'll have to go to my house first-"

"I'll pay for it." Riku dug out his black leather wallet and had a peak inside it. "I have enough."

Sora grinned. "Snitch it from your parents again?"

The older shrugged. "I wouldn't have any if I didn't."

"Wait…you stole it, then?" Kairi frowned. "You stole that money from your parents?"

"And?"

"Riku, I can't believe you'd do that! It's not your money…"

"It's…complicated, Kairi." _Not that you would understand._ He sighed. "They have plenty more. They won't miss it."

"I…I think you should return it, and ask for money properly."

"What?" Riku narrowed his eyes, getting irritated. "If you want the ice cream, I don't have a problem paying for it. Sora's never had a problem with eating anything paid for by my so-called 'stolen' money. If you do, then you're welcome to walk all the way back to your house and get it on your own."

She shut up then, but stayed obviously closer to Sora.

Riku wanted to smack his head against a nice, thick concrete wall. _I can't believe this…what, now she thinks I'm some kind of criminal? _He silently lead the way while fuming over not only her reaction to his 'stealing', but also how she clung to Sora's arm-and the brunette stupidly tolerated it.

* * *

The only ice cream parlor on the entire island happened to be a popular hangout for kids, and so they weren't really surprised when Tidus, Wakka, and Selphie waved them over. Sora took his usual of cookie dough, just as Riku got his strawberry swirl. Kairi chose chocolate mint, something that didn't appeal very much to either boy. That ate up half of Riku's money, and he couldn't help but frown at the look on Kairi's face when he paid. He was stuck somewhere between wanting to yell at her, and wanting to explain his life-which he decided would be pointless as she just wouldn't get it. Someone like Kairi who was so quickly accepted and loved by everyone…she would never understand the way Riku lived. He'd never really told Sora much either, but the brunette accepted and understood him without all the little details-something he'd always loved about him. But he had a feeling Kairi wasn't quite like that. _She's nothing like Sora. _And so he ate his ice cream in silence, listening as Selphie mindlessly chattered on excitedly about the end of summer.

"I can't wait for the end of August!"

"That's when school starts, ya? Why you want somethin' like that?" Wakka was a traditional chocolate chip fan.

"The End of Summer festival, of course! I'm on the Festival Help Committee, you know. It's going to be great-and so _romantic_ at sunset on the Ferris Wheel!" She sighed dreamily. "Now, if only I had a boy to go with…"

Every guy present suddenly had great interest in their ice cream.

"Oh, come on! And what about you, Kairi? You need a date, too. Are you going to ask you-know-who?"

Now all attention was on Kairi and she blushed. "S-Selphie!"

"Do you want me to ask him for you? I could-"

"No! That's okay! I'll do it…I guess."

"Right now?"

"I wasn't going to do it right now…"

"Oh, c'mon!" Selphie practically bounced in her seat.

Riku didn't like it at all. "Sora." Once the brunette's attention was on him, he continued. _Go to the festival with me?_ "What time is it that your mom usually makes dinner…?" Even though he knew perfectly well.

"Wha-oh no! We're late again!" He grabbed Kairi's hand without much thought and pulled her with him, saying quick goodbyes to all their friends before starting home.

Riku was in the mood for a race, a sword fight-anything reminiscent of their pre-Kairi life. But as far as he knew, she didn't enjoy any of those things, and so it seemed they were doomed to childish games until, as Sora had said, she got a hang of the place. But he had a bad feeling that told him that they wouldn't be rid of her, even then.

They all stopped in front of Sora's house except for Riku, who kept on going. The brunette was the first to notice. "Hey-Riku! Where are-"

"I was going _home_." He kept his back to the others.

"How come…?"

"I don't want to keep imposing."

"_Imposing_…? But, Riku…what are you talking about? You've never said stuff like that before…so why feel that way now?" Sora frowned, always one to speak his mind without much thought.

Kairi stared at Riku's back. "It's because of _me_, isn't it…? I came and made a lot of things change for you…and you don't like that, right?" She looked down. "Do you…hate me, Riku?"

_Yes._ "…no."

And then she _smiled_. "Really? You don't sound so sure."

The older teen whipped around. "Do you _want_ me to say yes?"

The smile disappeared the moment he had turned. "I just want to know how you feel."

_I just want things to go back to the way they were._ "What do you say the three of us build a raft?" Riku asked suddenly. _To get you home. **Someone **has to recognize you._ "To explore, and get to know each other better?"

"Hmm…" Kairi looked up to the night sky and smiled. "I think it's a great idea. We'll go, just the three of us!"

Sora said nothing, looking uncomfortable again. With that decided, they entered the house. And although they were late, thanks to Kairi, they still got dessert.

* * *

After brushing their teeth(each with their own toothbrush: Sora got a new red one, Riku a blue one, and Kairi got pink) and changing into pjs, the two boys sat in Sora's room, playing video games with only the small lamp on in the corner.

"Agh-why do you keep winning?"

The silver haired teen grinned. "Because I'm better than you."

With an angry pout and accompanying glare, Sora tackled the other without warning. "You're such an ass, Riku! Why am I friends with you, again?"

"You must be a masochist." He briefly wondered if Sora remembered all the naughty words they'd looked up in the dictionary last summer with Wakka and Tidus.

The brunette gaped. "And what does that make _you_?" He waited for some insulting comeback while he continued to straddle his friend.

"You get pretty violent, sometimes-so I guess I'm the same thing."

"I'm not _violent_!" He moved around some, trying to emphasize his point, completely unaware of the effect his movements had on the person below him. "Just, you really piss me off sometimes, and so I have to do something about it!"

"Like now?"

"Like now!"

"What, do you need anger management? There's better ways to take out your frustrations, Sora."

"Like what?" _I mean, I could break things, throw pillows…_

Riku wiggled his finger, demanding Sora come closer as if he were about to tell him a great secret. The brunette complied, leaning much closer and turning his head some, to allow the older to whisper it to him. Instead, Riku licked his ear.

Sora jumped with a squeak, and rolled over onto the floor, holding his ear. "What was _that_?"

"A hint."

Sora blinked and stared at his friend for a long time. "A hint…to what?"

Riku covered his face with his hands. "A hint to how dense you are." _And now, down there…ugh, this is so embarrassing. I think I…want to…_

"Riku…"

Uncovering his face, he turned his head to look at the brunette. "What?"

"Um…how did you know?"

"Know what?"

"Know to…you know…" His blushed brightly, motioning to his ear-too embarrassed to say it- before finishing his sentence in a whisper. "It…was…nice, I guess…I mean…um…"

A grin spread across Riku's face. "Talent, I guess."

Sora pouted. "Right."

"Tomorrow night…"

"Huh?"

"You said you were going to beat me, didn't you?"

"Oh-that's right!" The brunette threw punches into the air as if they were talking about a fight. For a moment, Riku almost thought he'd say something naughty out of the blue like: _"Just watch! With one kiss, I'll make you harder than you've ever been in your life!_ Which, shockingly, almost seemed to him like something Sora would say-if he were a naughtier person.

The older suddenly grew serious and shook his head to clear away the strange thoughts. "Sora…"

"Yeah?"

"Tomorrow, let's take that experimentation to the next level."

"Next…level? What's that?"

"Let me touch you."


	4. The 4th Day

Hello again, everybody! Man, I'm tired. I've been writing this chapter for hours on end, working with it and editing things, trying to keep it all nice and in character...and sorry if the fight scene isn't exactly exciting-those are hard to do, ya know?

I confess I didn't get to reviews, and most of you may have forgotten what you said. :O So, to remedy this(as I did with my other stories this time), I'll be dedicating this chapter to all of you(which i will list in a second). I also admit it was probably pretty stupid of me to post chapters 1-3 at the same time, because then I could have worked between my other two stories while still having something to post for this one, lightening my load for a little while. So...oh well! Such is the life of an idiot, hm?

I talked waaay too much for my A/N on my other two, so I'm trying to save my poor fingers, that have already been typing all day as it is. So, to get right to it, this chapter is dedicated to(FYI, normally, I dedicate my chapters to those who review, but leave no way for me to reply and thank them): crowvii(You're reading practically all my stories, AND you reviewed for each chapter of this even though I posted them all at once. You know I love you. XD), Hya-chan(aw, thanks so much! That made me smile), hyperactive crazygurl95(Yeah, I can't help my Kairi bashing...girls that they always make out to be so damn perfect and kind and helpful annoy the hell out of me, because it's so...FAKE!), Chubby-King-Chocobo(well, I try reeeeally hard to keep them in character...I find that a lot of stories out there don't do it well at all, but some can be rather good. Depends which you read, I guess. Though, if you want to know something funny, back when I first joined FFN and wrote for Gundam Wing...I liked the characters, but didn't know shit about them or the story...so I read other fics and totally based everything off of my own impressions from each one...HAHAHA! I should be shot for that...), blueEMERALD(I had only gotten one review probably cause you were about the fifth person to read it(as most people don't review, I've noticed...)because I was an idiot and put them all out at the same time. My bad. XD), The Last Keyblade Master(don't worry, when I wrote the last line of chapter three, I was nearly spazzing, myself! Enjoy the beginning on this one, my friend. I know Riku is suffering right nooow, but...well...I don't know. I'd offer comforting words, but i really can't be sure what'll happen to him, as I really don't plan things. Sorry!), waterfall tears(You're reading all my fics, too, I think. You rock! But, wait, so what KH pairing DO you like...? o.O), Mal'chik Gei(thank you! sorry it took so long!), and Miyu(yay! I like my fics to be kinda cute...and then also definately funny and angsty. Tis my fav stuff).

Thanks so much, guys! I love you all! And I'll be better with replying to my reviews now that I've settled in(more or less) to doing three stories at a time, I promise! Enjoy!

_

* * *

Chapter Four: The 4th Day_

"W-What...?"

"I want to touch you...Sora."

"But I..." Before the brunette could answer, Riku had rolled on top of him.

Crushing their lips together in a needy kiss, he helped the smaller boy forget all about...well, everything. Then his hands began their little mission by slipping under his shirt.

"R-Riku..."

"Shhh..." He slipped his tongue into Sora's mouth, exploring it fully. But his fingers all over the brunette's soft skin weren't enough, and he was craving more by the second. In one clean motion, he broke the kiss and slipped Sora's shirt off-not hard, considering the boy had turned to jelly at the other's touch. Riku trailed small kisses and bites down the younger's neck and collar bone, then stopping to suck on a nipple. Sora gasped and then _moaned_-a sound Riku couldn't help but get hard over.

After paying some attention to the boy's other nipple-which must have been getting lonely, Sora blushed a deep red. "I...can I...touch you, Riku...?"

Without bothering to answer, the silver haired teen tugged his own shirt off, and laid on the floor beside his best friend.

Hesitantly, Sora rolled over onto him. Trying to do as Riku had, he kissed the other while trembling fingers felt up and down the muscular chest. He froze instantly when confident hands slid up his thighs to undo his pajama pants. "R-Riku...what are you...?"

"I need you, Sora...I need to be...inside you..."

"I...we..."

"_Please_..." Riku reached up and rubbed the boy's growing erection through the thin material. "...I want to make you mine."

And then Riku suddenly awoke with a nasty hard-on. His extreme excitement over Sora's agreement-though hesitant-the night before had carried over into his dreams. He cursed his mind's inability to finish what it had started, though making a mess in Sora's bed would have been inarguably embarrassing. Slipping out of the brunette's light hold carefully, Riku noted that the hallway clock read 6:30 A.M. on his way to the bathroom. Locking the door felt strange, as he'd never felt a need to do so before. However, with Kairi in the house, he just didn't trust that she wouldn't 'accidentally' walk in on his nakedness, hoping for it to be Sora. Today, though, he didn't want to chance even Sora walking in, as opposed to his lack of care on normal days-and perhaps he'd even welcome it now that he recognized that he felt something for the brunette, but his current state was too embarrassing. Riku turned on the water and stripped down before stepping into the warm spray. Suddenly, he thought of how Sora had timidly agreed to letting himself be touched and his mind joy-gasmed all over again.

And then there was a knock on the door.

"Ugh…" He sighed and spoke up. "_What_?"

"Oh…um…" He could hardly hear Kairi's timid voice over the rushing water. "Sorry…I'll wait till you're done."

He growled to himself. "God dammit. Why does this shit always happen to _me_?" With another sigh he called out again. "I'll be out in a second!"

"Okay."

And just like that, the mood was broken. He turned the water to cold and cringed as it hit his skin, giving him goose bumps from the sharp contrast. It got rid of his 'problem', but soured his mood further.

* * *

Breakfast was simply cereal, since Sora's mother had left early that day. The three sat in silence for a long time before Kairi spoke.

"Um…about that festival-Sora, I-"

Riku quickly cut her off. "I was thinking we should all go _together_."

Kairi looked utterly lost for a moment before smiling brightly. "That's exactly what I was about to say! Selphie keeps talking about dates, but I thought it'd be nice if the three of us went together."

_Yeah, right._ Riku just smiled. _Too bad Sora and I won't be there._

Sora mumbled "Sounds good…" and then there was silence again.

"About the raft idea, too…wouldn't we be missing school? Wouldn't we get in trouble?"

The two boys shrugged at once and she frowned.

"I don't think it's a good idea to get everyone mad." There was more silence and, obviously not catching the 'I don't want to talk' vibes, she tried again for conversation. "Riku…how come you never go home?"

He stiffened and then shrugged, staring down at his cereal. "I'd much rather be here."

Sora was getting uncomfortable, knowing that it was a touchy subject for the older boy.

"Why? Don't you like it at home? Don't you miss your parents?"

"No."

She nearly gasped. "But…why?"

Riku stood, scowling. "You wouldn't understand, Kairi." And with that, he left for the bathroom, to brush his teeth.

The red head frowned and looked to Sora, as if asking what she did wrong.

Sora looked elsewhere, almost feeling like telling her about any of it at all was a betrayal to his best friend. "…even we don't talk about it. It'd be best not to ask him. Sorry, I didn't think to warn you."

"Oh…it's okay. I was just a little surprised." But the wheels in her head were turning now, as she came up with a plan.

The front door slammed moments later, and Sora flinched. _Riku's really mad…_

"We…could just walk around town, instead of going to the play island, if you want, Sora. There was a store I was hoping you'd show me…"

The boy stood, putting his and Riku's bowls in the sink. "Sorry, maybe another day." _I have to talk to him._

* * *

Sora arrived at the play island with Kairi, but left her behind to hang out with Selphie, in favor of finding his friend. Looking out off the pier, Sora predictably spotted his friend on Paopu Island-but what was he doing? He raced though the sand and across the little wooden bridge, only to find Riku…carving?

Sora was rather happy, at first. "Wood swords?" He hadn't even touched one since Kairi had shown up.

"I'm anticipating a fight." Riku looked up at him briefly before continuing.

_That look…_ "…and who do you think's going to win?"

"The older one, of course. He's taller, stronger…_better looking…_"

Sora plopped down into the sand next to him. "Hey, don't be so conceited."

He put on a surprised look. "What, it's not true?"

The brunette hit him playfully. "Shut up."

"Exactly that."

"…" Sora drew in the sand with his finger. "Are you…still mad? I mean, she didn't know, Riku. She was just curious…"

"…I don't know. Come back and ask me when I'm done."

The brunette was a little hurt. "Are you saying you want me to leave?"

"…yeah. Sorry, I just need a few minutes."

"Oh…okay." But even with an apology and explanation, he was still disappointed. _I wanted…to make you feel better. _He stood, then, and made his way to the secret place. It was there that he saw Kairi's picture of him. He smiled and sat before it, picking up the very same rock she had left there. _I don't think Kairi has bad intentions…why do you hate her so much, Riku? I don't like being torn like this._ He began drawing a picture of her face next to his, and sighed. _Maybe we really should get her home, somehow…people are probably missing her, and it might be better, for Riku. I like Kairi, but…Riku's really important to me, too. What can I do?_

* * *

Meanwhile, Riku continued to sit alone on Paopu Island, already working on the second sword. _I don't think…this is going to work out. So what if he'll let me touch him? Just because he agreed to some experimentation doesn't mean he'll ever like me. He's not into guys-he's obviously into Kairi. He'd never give me a second thought. _He frowned at nothing. _Give it up, Riku. You saw how freaked he was when he thought Kairi may have seen us. He probably only agreed in the first place because we're friends…even though we're rivals, there's nothing we wouldn't do for each other if asked._ Riku dropped the knife and covered his face with his hands, hating himself. _What the fuck am I doing? I'm forcing him into something he doesn't want!_ And then he heard the foot steps, and dropped his hands back down to his lap. _You were right, Sora. I really am a bad friend._ He picked the carving knife up, to seem as if nothing was wrong, when words spoken to him made him let go of it all over again.

"I _was_ right!"

Riku froze, and all rational thought stopped. How was it possible? He hadn't been speaking out loud, had he?

"You _are_ almost done. I mean, I know you still have to sand them, but let me help you, _please_? I'm so bored!"

The older let out the breath he didn't know he'd been holding and began laughing uncontrollably, purely out of the extreme relief he felt, realizing how completely stupid he'd been to think that Sora had somehow heard his thoughts.

The brunette blinked. On the one hand, he hadn't seen Riku quite this happy since Kairi had appeared, but on the other hand, it was a just a little creepy. "Uh…Riku? Are you okay? You're kind of freaking me out…"

"S-Sorry…" Was all the silver haired teen could get out between gasps for air.

Sora stared for a moment more, still wide eyed, before deciding to randomly tackle Riku, pushing him over into the sand. "Knock it off!"

Sadly, that only made it worse. "T-This is all s-so fucked up, S-Sora-I'm s-sorry." He managed, while trying to gain control over his psychotic laughter.

The brunette was practically laying on top of him, but thought nothing of it. "Huh?" He was even more confused now. _What's fucked up? Not you being happy, I hope…I miss this, Riku. Do you have any idea how musical your laughter is? It's…_ Sora blinked, wondering why he had suddenly thought something so…_strange_. He shook his head, determined not to give in. He hadn't noticed that Riku had already gotten a hold of himself and was now watching him with amused eyes. "Uh…"

"Welcome back. What did Inner Sora have to say?"

"Shut up!" The brunette punched him lightly before getting up and having a seat on the warm sand, grabbing the first sword Riku had finished, and beginning to sand it silently.

Riku followed suit and they sat in a fairly comfortable silence.

But something was bugging Sora. It was eating away at him and he couldn't stand it a minute longer. "Riku…"

"Hm?"

"I've been having…these weird thoughts lately."

The older blinked and looked over at him. "Like…?"

"Like…is any of this for real…or not?" _Am I just…imagining all of this, between us?_

Riku frowned, unable to decipher his friend's words. "I don't understand."

Sora laughed a little. "Yeah. Nevermind."

He didn't like that laugh. It was the one his best friend always used to try and cover up the real issue. As much as he was dying to know what the hell it was all about, he couldn't bring himself to ask-he _never_ could. Something in that laugh always made him let everything drop, and sometimes, he wondered if he really knew Sora as much as he thought he did. "…Sora?"

"Yeah?" The brunette began sanding again, the two of them nearly finished.

_The festival…_ "…nah, nothing."

"…okay." Sora always said okay-not because he couldn't ask or didn't want to, but he never liked to press the issue. He was peaceful to the core…most of the time. He laughed silently to himself when he realized that Riku must be right about them being masochists. _Why else would we love beating the crap out of each other? When we fight, with swords or fists or anything else…it's just the two of us. There isn't Riku's parents or Tidus laughing at me…there's nothing. Like some kind of drug…but it has yet to kill us._ Finished, he stood. "Ready, Riku?"

"Always." He brought his cockiness back, already beginning to change his concentration. There was only Sora, and the sword in his hand.

Neither noticed the little crowd that always showed up until the fight was over. Tidus was always the first to notice, and of course, when he shouted that they were about to fight, everyone always came running excitedly. As much as the young blonde hated to admit it, Sora was _good_. No, _better_ than good. He was the only one that could stand up to Riku…although he had never beaten the silver haired sword master.

Kairi got scared the moment Tidus had said it. "Oh no!" She grabbed onto Selphie's arm. "Riku must still be mad…what if he hurts Sora? What do we do?"

The shorter girl just laughed. "You'll get used to it, Kairi. They always do this! It's so exciting! Sora's never been able to beat him, though…well, come on!" She pulled the red head along to the now slightly crowded bridge that lead to Paopu Island. Tidus and Wakka were already there, along with a few younger kids they never really talked to.

_Sora…never wins?_ Kairi frowned. She had always thought that, even though Riku definitely fit the part of the bitter older rival who was always gloating about his strength, Sora was really the better fighter. The disadvantages in height and the differences in build never came to her mind-she firmly believed that Sora could do anything. She couldn't hear Tidus cheering on Riku. She couldn't see the people standing before her. There was just Sora, looking even more handsome in his fierce state of concentration. "Go Sora!" _You can do it!_

But the two boys couldn't hear her, already in their own world; looking angry, even though they really weren't. Riku's smirk melted into a frown. "The loser will be determined by whoever's sword breaks first, or whoever can't move anymore."

That would be no easy task, Sora knew. Riku had made them thick and strong, as well as slightly heavier than normal. It was obvious that he had planned it from the beginning, and although the sword breaking was a new twist, it was no different than any other time. At Sora's nod of understanding, the match began, and Riku flew with lighting speed into a careless, but powerful first swing. Sora was able to block it, although the power behind the blow made him back up a step. The loud crack hadn't frightened him, but had, instead, increased his determination to be that strong. Recognizing that the move left the other boy open, the brunette executed a quick turn, his sword flying straight for Riku's left side. However, the older was far too experienced to be caught in such a place, and parried the attack with ease, nearly knocking Sora off his feet.

Riku's frustration turned into the power behind every hard swing. Having feelings for his best friend was bad enough, but then Kairi just had to wash up on their shores. He didn't hate her, he had decided, he hated that she obviously wanted Sora for herself. Why couldn't she have appeared somewhere else, far away from them-another world? If she had, maybe he wouldn't be feeling quite so hopeless. After all, Sora had never shown interest in any other girl before _she_ showed up. It wasn't fair-_life_ wasn't fair. Living with Sora and getting closer to him…for a while, it had made it all bearable. But now what? _I won't just surrender and let Kairi have her little happily-ever-after! Not if I can't have mine._ Not that he believed in happily-ever-after's anymore. There's a fine line between love and friendship, but who's to say who deserves what? If push came to shove, and Sora really wanted to be with her, he knew he'd have to let him go-but he wasn't ready for that; no, not yet. With Sora's stumble, he took the chance to swipe at him, landing a good hit on Sora's left arm.

The brunette cried out at the pain that suddenly shot through him, but knew that he couldn't let it mess him up unless he wanted to be hit several more times and lose. He clumsily blocked Riku's next hit and dropped to one knee, knocking the other off his feet. It wasn't fair that he had to choose between his best friend and the girl he liked. _Did_ he like her? _…nah, no way-well…maybe. How should I know? But she's my friend now, too. Why can't you guys just get along?_ Everything would be great if they could just learn to be friends, but Riku was too proud and upset to change his mind-though Kairi made no move to apologize-and it really ticked him off. _But why upset? I don't get it…what's the big deal, Riku?_

"Oof!" The older landed hard on his back in the sand, but managed to roll to the side just in time to miss a good strike to his ribs. From there he got to his feet and blocked another three attacks. What Sora lacked in power, he made up for in agility-Riku knew this well. His ankle throbbed from being hit, and he tried his best to ignore the pain that surged through his leg with every step he took.

Time dragged on; more bruises were gained. It was when they both went to execute the same move(one Riku had made up, himself, and taught to Sora) that the swords not only clattered together, but went _through_ each other; splintering off into a million pieces. Time stood still after that.

A _draw_? They'd never had a draw before-Riku always won. The two stared at each other for a long time, panting, sweat running down their faces and bodies, but otherwise unmoving. Could you fight with one third of your sword missing? With a quick nod, they hastily decided that they could, and swung into action again.

Even Tidus had decided that it should end there. "Hey! Are you guys _nuts_?"

Kairi was afraid now-she'd never seen a battle so fierce before. "Sora, Riku! Please stop!"

But the calls went unheard, and no one was stupid enough to try and get between them. It was almost like a way to sort out their problems without having to actually talk about them. Riku lost focus for a moment when Sora ducked under one of his swings. _I'm not…this weak. I can be just your friend. I can… _And in just that second, he was left open to Sora's hit. It was an easy block, and Sora was so sure that he would have done so…but he _hadn't_. Now blood flowed freely down Riku's arm from the gash in his shoulder.

Sora gasped in horror and dropped his sword. "Riku!" _It wasn't supposed to get this serious! Ugh, how could I have been so stupid? Please be okay!_ He moved forward to help his friend, but Riku backed away from him with a scowl.

It hurt…but not as much as his heart did. _I don't need your pity! Don't..-stop looking at me with those eyes, Sora! I don't…**ever** want you to feel sorry for me. _Because something, somewhere far in the recesses of his mind, told him that this is what he deserves. That Sora needs a best friend-not a boyfriend, and that he was selfish for wanting things he could never have. Maybe the voice in the back of his head was his parents, telling him to stay out of their sight, and out of trouble. If he caused any stains to their name, they warned, he would be more than sorry.

Suddenly, he was a little boy again-the freak with silver hair that everyone pitied or was afraid of. But this time, even Sora looked on him the way they all did-and he was utterly alone. But that wasn't right. Sora was the only one who had ever treated him like a normal person-if it wasn't for him, they would all still look at him that same why. But then…why did Sora look at him that way now? _I don't want…your sympathy! _He held up the sword, as if ready to strike his unarmed friend, and Kairi ran forward, scared that he would really hurt Sora.

But before she could even get there, he had thrown it, watching as it flew out over the vast ocean, before it plunged into warm waters. Kairi now stood between the two and all was silent.

"I think…you guys shouldn't do this anymore."

Riku scowled. "And I think you should mind your own damn business." With that he turned his back on her and went over to the Paopu tree, having a seat on the trunk and examining his first serious battle wound.

The rest of the small crowed stared for a moment longer before going on their way. The action was over, and it seemed like nothing but a personal argument was going to follow. As much as Tidus and Selphie wanted to stick around and get all the juicy little details, Wakka pulled them off, reminding them how it was really none of their business.

Sora moved around her. "He wouldn't have hurt me, Kairi. Riku's not like that."

"But he-"

"It was just a freak accident. And I guess it sounds stupid, but…we enjoy fighting." Sora smiled at her sadly. "Didn't you say…that you wanted us all to be best friends? I know Riku's not really…easy to get along with…" There was a snicker from the silver haired teen, who could hear them with ease-Sora ignored it. "But it would mean a lot to me if you tried."

Kairi put on a smile and nodded before speaking up. "I'm sorry, Riku. I didn't think you were going to hurt him, I just wanted you to stop fighting. I mean, you're hurt!"

"I'm fine." Came his reply. _As if you care about me._

She crossed her arms in a huff, speaking in a more hushed voice so that Riku couldn't pick it up. "He's so cold to everyone, Sora. How can I be friends with him when he's always like that?"

Sora looked over to Riku's back, sadly watching as the ocean breeze ruffled his silver hair gently. _But he's never really been…cold to **me**. _"…I don't know. I never said it wouldn't take time…" He answered truthfully. "But he's my best friend, Kairi."

Without answering, she turned on her heel and left, walking quickly across the wooden bridge to escape them. She could see Selphie in the distance, and decided to go to the secret place-the only area she knew of where she could really be alone for a while.

Upon entering the cave, she felt the strangest cold breeze. She hugged herself, trying not to shiver. What was this feeling? The air outside the cave was warm in the evening sun, so where was it coming from? She continued through the tunnel, but when she came to where it opened out into the tiny room, she froze.

* * *

Sora sighed as Kairi stalked off and moved to stand before Riku, trying his best to look displeased. However, as soon as his eyes landed on the blood covered hand Riku had pressed to his shoulder, everything he was going to say about being kind to others faded from his mind. "I'm so sorry, Riku!"

The other smiled a little. "It's okay…I know you didn't mean it."

"Why didn't you block it? I wouldn't have done it if I didn't think that you…"

To this, Riku shrugged before wincing. "Maybe you're just getting better."

"Yeah, right." Sora laughed, not buying it in the least. He took hold of the end of his shorts and ripped off a piece as best he could, sighing and giving Riku a goofy smile. "I look _really_ cool now, right?"

Riku laughed a little, but it was soft and hollow, nothing at all like it had been earlier that day. "Not as cool as me." He teased.

Sora got sucked into it instantly, pouting. "Maybe I should dye my hair."

The older quirked a brow. "What color?"

The brunette shrugged casually and climbed up next to his best friend. "Silver, of course. Move your hand."

Riku did as he was told, but frowned out at the ocean. "You don't want this hair, Sora…I'm the one who should get some dye. Maybe…black."

Sora stopped in the middle of tying his makeshift bandage and stared at him. "_What_? No way! You'd better not." _Why…would you say that?_

"Why not?" He winced again when the knot was tied, putting pressure on the cut.

"I dunno…you're just not Riku in any other color."

_What…is that supposed to mean?_ "…I fail to see how my hair color has anything at all to do with my personality."

Sora laughed, then. "Well…I guess not." He paused thoughtfully before continuing. "I always thought it was kind of cool-you could be half way across the play island and I could still spot you."

Riku looked down. "It's not always good…to stand out."

_Crap, I'm supposed to be cheering you up, not making it worse!_ "What, like when you were hiding in the bushes? It totally gave you away." They laughed a little and Sora stood, stretching. "C'mon…I'll leave my boat for Kairi, and we'll go home. I really think I should clean that…" He gestured to the large amount of drying blood.

"Why do you keep saying 'I'?"

Sora furrowed his brow. "Because it's my fault, obviously. Mom's not home yet-she'd freak if she saw it. Let's go."

Riku gave in easily enough. "Okay…" He got down carefully.

The brunette was right at his side. "Need any help?"

"You don't have to baby me, Sora! I'm fine, alright? I can handle it."

"Sorry…"

He sighed and shook his head. "No, _I'm_ sorry…just, stop worrying so much, okay? I'm not dying or anything…" _Stop feeling sorry for me._

Sora was relieved that Riku wasn't really angry. "Okay…"

They made their way to the docks, but never did see Kairi, so they left the message with Selphie before heading to the main island.

* * *

There, in the middle of the back wall, was a large, wooden door.

_Huh…? This wasn't here before, was it? I'm sure I would have noticed it. _But Kairi blinked, and then it was gone, along with the chill in the air. Moving to the wall, she ran her hand over the stone. _This…is definitely weird. I must be seeing things-I'm probably still scared from when I thought Riku was going to hit him._ And at the thought of the smirking boy, she frowned. _There's just no getting along with him. Besides, there's something strange with him. He was really close to Sora the other morning._ And then she laughed out loud and had a seat. _I can't believe I just thought he was gay! A guy like him? He's like one of those girl magnets that Selphie loves so much and hates at the same time._

_"They're really great looking and all, but they're going to break your heart. Gotta watch out for those, right?"_

_He must not have a girlfriend right now, or I'm sure I would have met her. Hmm…nah, he just doesn't strike me as the gay type. Why am I even wasting time thinking about it? I like Sora, so I have to earn Riku's trust, right? If his best friend hates me, he won't go out with me. That's what Selphie said. So I have…a little over two weeks left until the festival. All I have to do is get Riku to like me before then and I can ask Sora…_ And that's when she spotted the drawing of herself, next to the one she had originally done of him. She sighed, suddenly feeling all romantic, like they had some kind of secret love affair going on. She had originally planned to draw the three of them together, but those thoughts had long passed. She suddenly remembered Riku's story of the Paopu fruit, and how Selphie had said that sharing one should be every serious couple's goal.

Picking up the rock, she carefully drew the star fruit between them, and drew her hand holding it. Kairi was sure Sora would get the message and draw his own hand, silently confessing that he wanted to share one with her, too. She giggled; it was the most romantic thing she'd ever heard of. _I'll try to be nice, but Riku better not get in my way!_

These things realized, when they got back to the main island, Kairi would have to take a walk. There was something she needed to do now.


	5. The 5th Day

Hey everyone, guess who?! I feel like I keep repeating myself and my SSS, so I figure if you really wanna know, go see I Promise chapter 33, Hold Me Gently, Always Catch Me chapter 3(I think it's three) or just check out my profile. Long story short, life's been hard. It's been keeping me from doing all the things that I love most. I'm working on it, though, as you can see by the fact that I updated all three of my stories in two days. I love FFN, I love you guys and your continued support through these hard times would be appreciated. Now go enjoy more RikuxSora goodness! Woo!

_Chapter Five: The 5__th__ Day_

The sun was just barely beginning to set in their home town, and it wouldn't be long before Sora's mother came home from work. Riku briefly wondered if Kairi would spill the beans to her about what they had done and how _serious_ their fight was. While it was painful, getting his first serious injury made Riku feel _alive_, not to mention important. Sora fawning over him was a big bonus, overall making it worth getting. Having returned to Sora's house, they made their way into the bathroom. "Try not to touch anything. Mom would freak if she saw blood on the walls…" But that blood had long since dried, causing Riku to roll his eyes. Sora frantically searched around for all the right medical supplies. "It's…not _too_ bad, right? You won't need stitches…will you?"

"Nah." Riku reassured him. "As long as it doesn't get infected, I'm fine."

The brunet blinked, taking that as a roundabout way of telling him to wash his hands first. Riku watched with amusement as he did so, practically shaking like a leaf the entire time.

"Sora."

"Yeah, Riku?"

He smirked. "Relax, would you? You're making _me_ nervous."

This only served to spazz him further. "Right-sorry!" He clumsily sorted out the supplies and tried to decide what exactly he should do first.

After another moment or so, Riku couldn't take it anymore and grabbed him firmly by the shoulders. "Sora!"

The smaller boy stared at him with wide eyes.

_Well, now that I've got your attention, you nut ball._ "Okay…take a deep breath, and repeat after me: I will remain calm."

"I will remain calm…" He seemed entranced, staring into shimmering aqua eyes.

"I'm not going to die." _But if you don't hurry up I'm going to jump you! Okay, okay. Bad thought._

"I'm not going to die…" He echoed slowly.

He stared. "You're supposed to say '_You're_ not going to die'."

"I _did_." Coming to the sudden strange realization of what they both thought the other had meant, they blinked at each other before falling into a fit of laughter. _This is what I miss, Riku…laughing, even about stuff like this. I…don't really want Kairi to go, but…ever since she showed up, you haven't been the same._

"All right, grab the…antiseptic. And a cloth that's anything but white." Oh, how Riku hated antiseptic. It was beyond him how anything that hurt so much could _possibly_ be helpful. While Sora got it open, he peeled off the makeshift bandage carefully. The blood had already started to dry and stick to it, making it twice as painful to remove.

The silver haired teen made to grab the wet washcloth, but Sora held onto it. "Let me help." _This is my fault, and you know it._

He shrugged painfully. "Suit yourself." And then hissed the moment the dampened material touched him.

The brunet froze a moment before continuing. After some silence, he tried to gather up his courage. "Hey, Riku…"

"What?" He bit out rather painfully.

"Are you…really mad at me?"

The taller looked up at the other from his sitting position. "…why would I be?"

"It's…it's my fault that Kairi's here, right? And she…makes you really uncomfortable. I should have asked you before I told mom that this was fine."

He frowned, averting his eyes. "Don't be stupid, Sora. This is…_your _home. I may be here a lot, but that doesn't make it mine. Whatever I might have said…that decision was ultimately yours." _C'mon, be grown up about this…suck it up. No point in saying 'That's exactly right, asshole!'_ "And it's…probably better that I didn't get to influence your decision. You like her, everybody's happy, yadda, yadda, whatever, right?"

"Everyone except you!"

"Ow! Watch what you're doing there, huh?"

"Sorr-"

"If you're happy, I'm happy, alright?" _I'm sooo full of shit._

Sora pouted. "Liar." He gave no warning before pouring the clear liquid over his best friend's cut, and maybe it was better that way.

"_Sonofabitch!_" He spat, recoiling instantaneously.

The brunet gaped. "Shit-Riku, are you okay?!"

"Just finish this as quickly as possible, _please_." He growled with clenched teeth.

"Right!" He grabbed the gauze and started wrapping it around his arm carefully. There were only a few more moments of silence before he spoke again. "Hey, Riku…"

"What now, Sora?"

"Did you really mean what you said, about building that raft?"

"For the most part." The silver haired teen answered honestly. _Minus Kairi coming with us._

He frowned, securing the gauze with medical tape. "It doesn't seem like Kairi wants to do it anymore, though…"

"Who cares?" Riku watched him put away the supplies. "If she likes it so much here, she can _stay_. We had already decided on it _before_ she showed up, if you remember." _Don't…back out of it now. Not because of __**her**__!_

He stared into the cabinet thoughtfully. "We all…say things we don't mean…"

The taller stood, letting go of his composure. "Especially _you_!" And then he stormed from the room and down the hall, slamming Sora's door after entering, as if it were his own. _…I should just open the window and leave. I'm saying too much. I'm not controlling myself!_ Ever since Kairi had shown up, all control had slipped from his life, leaving things a horrible mess. And he _hated_ it.

The door creaked open slowly. "…Riku…?"

Unable to decide, he rushed to the window and pried it half way open before being tackled to the ground. Riku could feel his shoulder wound rip back open painfully and begin bleeding all over the bandages. "Dammit, Sora!"

"Don't leave!" He held onto the other boy for dear life.

He kicked the brunet off of himself and gripped his injured shoulder. "And why _shouldn't_ I? You're always begging me to stay, but everything you do screams for me to go! I'm _so sorry_ to ruin you and Kairi's little happy-ever-after, but I really can't stay here a minute longer! So which is it, Sora? Because, like it or not, I'm building that raft and I'm _leaving_ on it. If you really want to stay behind that badly, you can go right fucking ahead! But I'm not changing my mind."

Sora had hit the DVD case hard, boxes spilling to the floor. But he couldn't have been more oblivious to the pain if he'd tried. The only thing he could hear was his best friend's words, echoing in his mind. "R-Riku…I…"He bit his lip for a moment. "…so that's…how you've really felt…all this time."

"Shut up. I'm not mad at you." Riku felt guilty already. _I couldn't have possibly fucked up worse than this, could I? Great!_

Tears had gathered at Sora's eyes, threatening to fall at any moment. "Yes you are! All of this…you thought I was choosing Kairi over you?! I…I would never…you're…" Sure enough, those hot tears spilled down his cheeks.

Riku's defense completely crumbled, just like it always had when Sora cried. He sat down beside him, pulling the poor mess that was Sora into his lap, and caressing his hair gently. "Idiot…" _Why…do you have to make this so hard for me? I don't even know if I'd…be able to leave you behind anymore, dammit. _He sighed lightly, not sure what to do.

Sora sniffled before hesitantly looking up. "…R-Riku…"

The silver haired teen tried so hard not to look down at that heart-breaking expression. "Mm?"

"…touch me."

All thought suddenly came to a halt in his mind. "Wha…what?"

The brunet lost some of his nerve at having to repeat it, and averted his eyes. "I…I said that…I want you to…touch me."

Suddenly, he could barely breathe. No, he couldn't have heard it right. "Sora…?" He whispered into the beginning darkness, his heart racing. The sun had almost completely set outside his half-open window.

"_..please…_" He breathed.

_I'm losing my mind._ Without another thought, Riku leaned down and captured Sora's lips in a heated kiss. It screamed of frustration and need, of loss of control. His hands felt their way down Sora's slim body before he gripped his ass, standing just long enough to fall into the mattress.

Sora could barely catch his breath, parting his lips to permit the other boy's access. _This makes you happy, right?_ He gasped suddenly as warm hands slipped under his shirt. _Anything…for you, Riku._

The older teen kissed his way down the brunet's neck before sucking on his collar bone in a way that was sure to leave a mark. _Could it be…that you…_ Their shirts came off easily enough, and Riku ran his tongue over a nipple.

Sora gasped suddenly before producing a quiet moan. "A-Ah…Ri..ku…" It was nearly enough to send the older boy over the edge-but he couldn't get enough. He sucked and nipped at it, eliciting more, louder breathy moans from the teen beneath him.

As Riku began to undo his pants, Sora held onto him tightly. _Just…don't leave…_ Laying there atop one another in just their boxes, their hardened lengths pressing against each other, made it all the more real in Riku's mind. It wasn't just a beautiful dream that would leave him broken when he awoke.

"Sora…" He whispered breathily. "Sora, I…I want to-"

_Click-bang!_

Time stilled as they realized that his mother had just entered the house. "_Fuck!_" Riku hissed. He got off the bed, pulling a dazed Sora with him. He flicked on the light and threw some clothes at the other. "Hurry and get dressed!" And that's when he saw the blood that had dripped onto the sheets from his soaked bandage. _Shit, shit, shit!_ He pulled on some clothes for himself. "Make it look like you're picking up the DVDs!" He ripped the sheet off the mattress, balling it up just in time for Sora's mother to enter the room.

"Didn't you two hear me call…ing?" She blinked. "What're you boys doing?"

"Cleaning!" Riku answered all too quickly.

She looked around skeptically, but it really didn't seem like anything else. "I'm shocked! What a turn around for you two! Maybe you're finally growing up."

The silver haired teen tried to manage a smile. _Can you leave the house for five more minutes so I can finish what I started and grow up a little __**more**__? Dammit…_ But it was too late. The mood was definitely broken.

"Where's Kairi? It's already dark out…"

"We wanted to come back and play video games…" Riku lied easily. "But she was having such a good time with Selphie that we decided to leave one of our boats there and let her come back when she's ready."

"Is that so?" She narrowed her eyes. "What suspicious behavior you two have today. Well. Dinner will be ready in an hour or so."

"Okay." They answered in unison. She took another glance around and then she was gone. They both sunk to the floor, letting out sighs of relief.

* * *

It was when they had been seated at the dinner table for about five minutes that Kairi strolled in.

"Oh, thank goodness! Where have you _been_?" Sora's mother looked her over as if she'd been wandering around the wilderness for weeks.

"I got a little lost…" She lied.

"See? I told the two of you that you shouldn't have left her like that!"

"It's okay!" She insisted. "Really."

They were mostly silent for the rest of their meal…but Riku had a bad feeling about the reason for Kairi's absence. _What did you do…? _


	6. The 6th Day

Hey everybody! How's it hanging? Surprised I'm back so quickly? Me, too. Haha...I've had such a hard time with Riku and Sora lately. I think I reeeeally need to reply the games. But I hope this chapter and the previous are okay. I realize I messed up the time fram a little, if you've been paying attention to the chapter titles as being the days. But who's counting, really? (Me, apparently!) After the seventh day, they'll only have two weeks before the festival. Then the real adventure begins and a lot of new(to this story, not to the story of KH) will begin to appear. We won't be seeing less of Riku, however. I don't know if you can feel it, too, but it seems to me that he's like the main character of this story. Although in third person, I focus on his emotions and thoughts the most. Also, you'll note I seem to have a thing about abusive parents...(no, mine weren't if that's what you're thinking)...really, it probably just carried over from my FF8 story. I think what I have a thing about is these parents to try to act like they're so wonderful and la-de-da(everytime I say that now, I think of the Departed. "Well, la-de-fucking-da." If you haven't seen it, DON'T. Matt Damon scares me now.), and then up close and personal, they're really scary. Anyways. I've talked enough! This would have been done yesterday, I suppose, but I get super sleepy after 11 PM now-a-days. Like eye-lid-drooping sleepy. Haha...well, enjoy! Don't forget to tell me how it is!

* * *

Chapter Six: The 6

th Day

_After 12 AM on the 6__th__ Day._

Riku and Sora laid together in the darkness, keeping perfectly still. They were each pretending to be asleep, when really, they couldn't be if they tried. Different thoughts were swirling around in their heads, and neither could make sense of it.

Sora tried to stay as still as possible, just in case Riku was really awake, being careful not to actually touch the other. At length, he opened his eyes and slowly turned his head to the right, so he could stare at the silver haired teen, who really did appear to be asleep. _Riku…I wonder what you were going to say…_

"_Sora, I…I want to-"_

_I mean, he couldn't have…meant…_ The brunet blushed immediately at the thought. _Why would Riku want to do…__**that**__ with me? Maybe I just didn't understand. That can't be what me meant. _He sighed lightly and turned his gaze to the ceiling. _Why…did I ask him to touch me? I thought it would make him happy, but…is that really it? Did I…__**want**__ it? It…felt good, but that would mean…that I…I'm…_ Sora covered his face with a hand. _I'm probably reading into this way too much, so I'm just gonna stop now. The only way to know for sure is to ask him._

At the same time, Riku was thinking about entirely different things. _Damn it…what's Kairi up to? It's obvious that she didn't get lost. I know she's only been here for a few days, but being the __**bright**__ girl that she is, I'm sure she remembered the way here the first time we showed her. Tomorrow…definitely tomorrow…I think…_ He sighed a little and turned over onto his side, not caring if Sora was really asleep or if he knew that he was awake. _I wonder why, Sora…_

"…_touch me…__**please**__…"_

It almost made him hard all over again just thinking about it. _It definitely sounded like he wanted it. But…why? Why, right at that moment? I don't want it to just end up being 'well, I did it cause you felt bad'. It felt like more than that…it had to be. But…I'll never ask you. It seems like…we're coming together, but the space between us is growing. Does that make any sense? _The brunet coughed once, quietly, giving away his disposition. Then it was silent once more.

"Hey-" they started at the same time.

"You go first." Sora quickly answered.

"No, go ahead." The other insisted.

"Ah…it's just…" _Man, I really didn't want to go first!_ "I…I wanted to know…if um…we…if we are…" He trailed off, unsure of how to continue.

"Are what, Sora?" He sounded a little impatient.

"Are…" The brunet sighed, feeling a little frustrated, himself. "Is there…something there, between us? Or…is it all in my head?" He wasn't sure what answer he really wanted to hear. A 'yes' would at least mean that he wasn't imagining things. But a 'no'…what would that mean? Just thinking about it made his chest hurt, and he wasn't even sure why.

"I'm tired of trying to figure it out!" Came the surprising answer from an irritated boy. Riku flipped over to face the other. "I'll tell you what, Sora. _You_ figure it out. And when you decide, you let me know."

He blinked. "…why me?"

"Because you're the one…" The silver haired teen let himself fall onto his back again to stare into the darkness. "…who doesn't know what he wants."

"Riku…"

"You know, Sora…I have a bad feeling…about tomorrow."

"A…bad feeling?" He echoed.

"Mm." _Something…doesn't feel right._

* * *

It was well into the afternoon, and the sun was already high. They would not awake, no matter how often they were called. Riku and Sora clung to each other, sleeping soundly though it all.

Meanwhile, it the kitchen, Kairi and Sora's mother sat at the table, eating breakfast alone. "The nerve of those boys." His mother huffed. "Really. If they're going to play video games all night, I'll have to take the systems away."

"Video games, huh…?" Kairi frowned in thought. To her, it had looked like Riku was holding Sora in a protective embrace. When she thought about it, she realized with frustration, it would make perfect sense if Riku were gay. It would explain everything, especially his behavior towards her. Yes, she had decided that Riku hated her…because he wanted to steal Sora! _And everything he does…is to try and make Sora hate __**me**__!_ Surely, it was now clear that his true goal was to convert the brunet to his disgusting ways. Kairi clenched her fists. _Well, you can forget it! I'm going to save you, Sora…just hang on! I…I won't let him ruin our happily-ever-after!_ "Don't you think…they're more than friends?"

His mother didn't look up, not even phased by the question. "Well, of course they are."

Her blue eyes went wide. "What…?"

"They're like brothers, those two. Just as silly and reckless, constantly rivaling one another…but they also love each other very much. It's tough, manly 'I'll-still-beat-you-to-a-pulp-' love, but…it's always been that way. No one could ever get in-between them."

Kairi was relieved and angry at the same time. "Oh." _Then I'll be…the first one to do it! Wait for me, Sora!_ "What if they were…more than that?"

She looked up at the girl. "What could possibly be more than that?"

"Um…never mind…" _Guess she's never had to worry about it before. That's why she didn't know what Riku's out to do!_

* * *

Sleepy sky eyes cracked open, automatically searching for pools of aqua. Upon catching the other's gaze, they both smiled. Sora yawned and shut his eyes again, as if prepared to sleep another few good hours.

"Shouldn't we get up by now…?"

"Nooo…" He whined and snuggled into Riku's chest.

The older seemed confused, though he very much enjoyed the contact. "Why not? You can't _still_ be tired…?"

There was silence for a moment before Sora whispered into his shirt. "…if we don't get up, nothing bad can happen today."

"Wha…" At first, the answer puzzled him.

"_I have a bad feeling…about tomorrow."_

Then Riku smiled slightly. "Okay…" And they slept once more, if only for a while.

* * *

It was nearly four in the afternoon when the two boys strolled out the door. Kairi and Sora's mother had already gone ahead, they discovered, according to the note they found.

'To the sleepyheads-

Kairi got her own boat today, and we're sorry you missed it. She'll be waiting for you at the play island. I'm off to work. Be home on time for dinner, stay out of trouble and have a nice day! No exceptions!

-Mom'

Riku still had a sinking feeling in his chest, but tried to ignore it as they walked the familiar streets of their town.

"So, where are we going?" The brunet stretched his arms into the air before letting them fall back to his sides.

"…to my house." He quickly continued to clarify. "We'll need money today."

"Huh?" Sora stared at him curiously. "What for?"

"Because today…" Riku smirked to himself slightly. "…we begin building the raft." _We have to start now if we want to have it finished by the night of the festival. And while you happily stand around waiting for him, we'll be long gone, Kairi. That's exactly what you deserve._ Sora seemed to have nothing to say about it, which reminded him that his best friend was still iffy about it. "Or I could build it myself, if you're not interested. Your workmanship is crappy, anyway." _If you're not…going with me…at least help me build it._

This easily got the reaction he'd hoped for. "No way! My swords are always better than yours!"

"You wish."

"I'll show _you!_" And they bickered on all the way to the fancier side of town.

* * *

"Hey, Riku…"

"Hm?"

Sora stared up at the large white house, with its pristine lawn and perfectly trimmed bushes. "You…really weren't kidding when you said they had lots of money."

"Nope…c'mon." He took Sora's hand and lead him around the side of the house.

"What're we doin-"

"Shh!" The silver haired teen stopped to look at his best friend, whispering. "What, you think I can just waltz in the front door after not coming back for months and say 'Good morning! I just came to get some cash from you and I'll be on my way!'?"

"But they-"

"Quiet, Sora." After glancing around, Riku reached up to open the window to, what Sora could only assume was, his bedroom. After trying a dozen times, it still wouldn't budge. It was locked. "The hell…?" Riku frowned. "Here, we'll try a different one."

From there, they went all around the house, trying every window. Each one was shut tightly, and even those that were open a few inches were locked into place. "Are all your windows usually locked…?"

He shook his head. "No, it's usually the opposite…" He sighed and dug into his pocket. "I guess I'll have to go through the front after all…"

"But-"

Riku produced a key. "Stay here, just in case." And then he ran off, leaving the brunet to stare after him.

"In case of what?" Sora frowned, starting to understand the bad feeling that the other had warned him about.

The silver haired teen slowly approached the front door, climbing the few steps as silently as possible. He put the key up to the slot and…it wouldn't go in. _…you're kidding me. _He tried several more times, but there was no doubt: they had changed the locks. Just as he had given up, the door opened and there his father stood, towering over him. _Oh, fuck._

The grey eyes cast a quick glance around, no doubt looking to see if anyone was watching. "Come in, _son_." It wasn't a request.

Sora's eyes widened from where he hid, having only really seen the door open. He didn't even understand the full seriousness of the situation, but he was worried all the same. _Make up an excuse and get of there, Riku…_

The teen cautiously entered, and no sooner had he stepped inside was the door slammed behind him. He whirled around to see his father's scowling face, but he attempted to be brave anyway. "Why did you change the locks?"

_Whap!_

The hit came fast and hard, throwing Riku to the ground. He hissed as the gash on his shoulder reopened again. _Damn it…_

"Who do you think you are, trying to sneak into our house?"

His mother entered the room, and although her voice indicated that she was a more timid person, she was not afraid to show her displeasure. She would never beat him, but then again, it wasn't necessary. "Do you have _any_ idea what the neighbors would think, if they saw you climbing through a window?"

He tried to smirk. "Maybe they'd investigate."

"Fool!" His father sent a kick to his ribs that made him cry out and curl up in pain. "We're highly respected people, and you'll regret the day you embarrass us. Understand?"

"Y-Yes…" He quietly answered, defeated.

"Excellent." The man had longer silver hair, which he kept in a pony tail. He grabbed his son and dragged him down the hall.

The rugs burned his skin as he was pulled along. _Shit, maybe I should have brought Sora with me…_

Riku's father opened the door to Riku's room and flung the boy into it, watching without remorse as he hit the desk before sinking to the floor. "Did you think we'd never find out that you're stealing our money? We'll see how apologetic you are in a little while, and I might decide not to send you to the small, year-round boarding school on the south island. But, mark my words, you'll earn back every penny of it…in one form or another." Then the door was slammed shut.

It seemed like an eternity that Riku laid there silently before he was able to find the strength to crawl to his window. "Sora…" He tried to prop himself up, to see down below, but he saw no one. He wondered if the brunet was still further down, where he had left him. He reached up with the arm that wasn't bleeding all over the place, trying to reach the locks.

Sora kept peaking around the corner, waiting. _It's been a long time…this is bad…_

After a few tries, he was able to pop them open, but the strain left him feeling weak. He tapped on the window over and over, hoping that someone, specifically a certain brunet, would hear it before his parents did.

At first, Sora ignored the sound. _I have to wait for Riku. _A minute later, it struck him that it might _be_ Riku. _But why would he be…?_ Deciding to investigate, the brunet crept further down the side of his best friend's house. Realizing that the tapping came from the older teen's window, he rushed to it. "Riku!" He whispered loudly. And if he ducked slightly, he could see his face though the glint that the sun reflected on the glass. He waited a moment, expecting Riku to open the window. When nothing happened, he tried to see inside again. The silver haired teen made an upward motion with his hand, which Sora could only guess meant 'open the window'. He grabbed the sill and pushed up as high as he could, which wasn't very, even standing on his tip toes.

A shaking hand reached out for the brunet. "Sora…" He whispered.

"Riku, what's-"

"Help…"

Finally, Sora got a really good look at his best friend…and realized that he looked awful. With the angle he was at, he couldn't see much of the damage, but understood from the look in hazy aqua eyes that he was in a lot of pain. "Just…crawl out, and I'll catch you, okay?"

"No you won't…" Riku retorted, but attempted it anyway. Having no sense at the moment, he had gotten the first half of his body out the window before he fell the rest of the way, crashing into Sora. They laid in a heap on the ground for quite a while before the brunet came to his senses.

He squeezed out from under the older boy, who was taller and weighed more than he did. "Ow, Riku…can't you-" Blue eyes stared in horror. "R-Riku…" He dropped down to his knees and pulled the dazed teen into his arms. "Wha…what the fuck did they _do_ to you?!"

Riku's shoulder wound had not only split open, but had ripped further, causing a hefty amount of blood to run down his arm and side. The left half of his body was red from the rug burn, and although it wasn't visible, he had several large, deep purple bruises starting to form. "We have to…escape…"

Sora knew Riku was right, and carefully pulled him to his feet. He kept his arm tightly around the other for support, and they limped off for the nearest hospital. _I'm so sorry that I…ever doubted you, Riku. Now…I understand everything. But why…didn't you ever say anything?_

"N-No…" The older murmured. "Not…East Side Hospital…"

"But…Riku, it's the closest one. I have to get you there fast!"

"I said _no_!"

Sora flinched and stared at the ground, looking hurt. "West Side is too far…we'd never make it there. Why…?"

"Why…?" Riku echoed.

"_We're highly respected people, and you'll regret the day you embarrass us. Understand?"_

Everyone there would know who he was: the son of one of the richest couples around, who never seemed to be at their dinner parties. And he would walk in there with a kid they _didn't_ know, and then it would be obvious that he went to the west side of the island all the time. Surely, it would equal some kind of embarrassment to get him into trouble for. But suddenly, he couldn't think about it anymore. He became dizzy, and it felt so warm…then he blacked out.

"R-Riku? Riku!" When his best friend didn't respond, Sora tried his best to lift him up and carry the older on his back. Now that he was awake, he had no say, the brunet decided. _I'm sure you said it for a good reason, but…I could never get you there. I'm sorry, Riku…please don't be mad…_

* * *

Kairi had been alone on the play island all day, furiously wondering if the two were still sleeping. _Riku is making him do all of this…_ She entered their secret cave, just wanting to be alone. She couldn't face Selphie and the others anymore, who kept asking where Sora and Riku had gone. Making her way to the back, she felt a cold breeze for a moment, and then It was gone. _The door again…?_ But there was no door when she arrived. Then she noticed it. There was now a hand to hold the other side of the paopu fruit. _It's Sora!_ She nearly squealed with delight. _That means he wants to share one with me!_ She remembered what Selphie said about timing. _The night of the festival, at sundown on the ferris wheel…_ That's when she would do it. With that decided, she drew little hearts to compliment their picture, completely unaware that somewhere, close by…someone was laughing at her.

* * *

It was a few hours before he awoke, instantly trying to sit up, before falling back onto the bed with dizziness.

"Don't do that!" A voice scolded.

"Who…? He whispered, trying to focus.

Sora pouted. "Who else? I'm so glad you're okay, Riku…"

"Ugh…what happened?" He brought a hand to his warm forehead. He could see more clearly now, and he realized with horror that this was definitely _not_ West Side Hospital. "Sora! Why did you-I told you anywhere but _here_!" He completely covered his face with his hands. "Fuck, they're going to kill me…I'm going to die…"

Sora frowned. "I'm not stupid, you know." After receiving a confused look, he crossed his arms and continued. "No one seemed to recognize you, so I faked our names and information on the chart after they took you into the emergency room. I told them I didn't know much more about you than your name…that you were just someone I saw once in a while. I said that we were climbing trees…and that you slipped and fell out. They bought all of it, so we should be find until morning…"

Riku relaxed and breathed a sigh of relief. "You're lucky no one recognized me…" Which was his way of saying thanks.

"I had to take that chance, Riku…I couldn't carry you all the way back…"

"You…carried me?"

"Yeah…" Sora looked tired just remembering it. "By the time we got here, I thought _I_ was going to die!"

It was then that the nurse entered with a smile. "Hello! You're awake-that's very good. Oh, Usotsukei(a play on "usotsuki": liar)…visiting hours are almost over, and I haven't been able to get a hold of your parents yet."

"That's okay!" He insists. "I want to stay with Kyoohansa(a play on "kyoohansha": accomplice)."

She looked worried. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I'm fine!"

The lady shrugged. "Well, alright. I'll be back to check on you in a few hours."

No more than thirty seconds after she had gone, Riku burst out laughing so hard that it hurt. "S-Sora…"

The brunet looked startled. "What? What is it?"

"You're…you're s-so…fucking hilarious, Sora!" He just couldn't get a hold of himself. After a run in with his parents, and every possible thing going wrong, he just didn't know what else to do but laugh.

The brunet laughed a little, himself. "It's all I could think of…" After a moment, once the other started to settle down, he had to ask. "Riku…"

"…yeah?"

"Why didn't you ever tell me? If I…had known…"

"…what would you have done, Sora?" The older finally got himself to sit up, still in much pain.

"I…" _…absolutely nothing. There's…nothing I can do for you. There really…never was._ He frowned down at the sheet. "…then, you…how could you ever talk about going home?! That's a lousy joke, asshole!"

Riku was surprised for a moment before reaching over and ruffling Sora's hair. "You're so cute…when you're worried about me."

The brunet blushed instantly and smacked the offending hand away. "Whatever." He muttered darkly, crossing his arms again.

The silver haired teen chuckled lightly for a moment before frowning, himself. "I told you something bad was going to happen today."

"I told you we should have stayed asleep."

"Heh, I guess you were right…" He paused a moment before continuing. "…you realize that Kairi did this, don't you?"

Sora's eyes almost popped out of his head. "_What_?"

Riku sighed. "Don't be stupid, Sora. Kairi did this! A few days ago, she found out that I "steal" money from them. Then, the day of our fight, she realized that I don't like my parents. She already knew that I was planning to build the raft…and she came home awfully late last night, didn't she?"

"What…are you saying…?"

"I'm saying she put two and two together! She figured out that I was going to take money to make the raft, so she asked around and found my house, happily telling my parents what I was going to do! That's why they locked all the windows and changed the key to the front door! I'm saying that Kairi's a no-good _bitch_, Sora!"

"…" The younger stared at him for some time before looking elsewhere. "We don't know that for sure, Riku…"

"Oh, I'm _pretty_ sure. Besides…she said she didn't want to go, right? If I took you with…it's no secret that she's got the world's biggest crush on you!"

"What's that got to do with anything?!"

"Just about _everything_!"

Sora lunged forward and grabbed Riku's hospital shirt, scowling. "It doesn't matter if we don't fucking _care_, now, does it?" He whispered darkly before kissing his best friend, probably more fiercely than seemed possible from the peaceful boy. It took the other a moment to respond to the kiss, but by then it was already over. Sora bit the older boy's lip as he pulled away.

Riku wanted nothing more than to revel in the moment. It was the first time Sora had initiated a kiss between them, much less been quite so passionate about it. He stared down at the sheets sadly. "…but you do care, don't you? Stop saying bullshit just to make me happy."

Sora covered his face with his hands, resting his elbows on his knees. "I…don't know anymore, Riku…why does everyone want me to choose…? Why couldn't we have all just gotten along and been friends? Why does everything have to get so complicated…? I just want to go back in time. I just…want to make it like none of this ever happened!" Without warning, he jumped up and ran from the room. Once outside it, he could just barely hear Riku's quiet agreement before taking a walk to the vending machines.

* * *

At Sora's home, his mother was worried sick, calling all around town to see if anyone knew where they were. At length, she gave up when no one seemed to know. Kairi just hid out in her room, drawing hearts in her diary. It didn't matter where they were, or even if Riku had _kidnapped him. She knew Sora wouldn't give in._


	7. The 7th Day

I'm back! 'Ello, my friends. Long time no see, eh? Though I did update my profile occasionally with little news here and there...rest assured I will go reply to your reviews as soon as this is posted. I felt strangely nervous as I logged into here today...I can only guess that I worry that you all would have stopped waiting for me by now. -sweat drops- It kind of reminds me of my FF8 story, cause once I had taken nearly a year or so to update it...and while I know that lives change and people move on, it was sad to not really hear from any of the people I had come to most love hearing from, ya know? It's a sad thing. But, you have my most honest promise that I will never, ever quit on my stories. They're wonderful writing practice, they're things I love writing about, and I want to see the characters get there as much as you do. I won't quit, so don't ever worry about that. I just ask you all to be patient with me...because life...isn't kind. Especially not to me, it would seem. If you guys have any personal stories of overcoming some really bad things, ya know, inspirational kind of stories, I'd love to hear them. It would really help. I'll update my profile with a bit more in specifics about "me things", since last time I checked, we're not supposed to be putting much here anyways. But none of you guys would report me for that, right? Haha...

One last little note...uh...to "Face Reality" who preached to me about all the things Riku and Sora could have done to save Riku from his parents' abuse...um...how should I say this...it's a STORY. It's FICTION. While I appreciate your...um...concern for Riku's unfortunate situation, you have to understand that it's all in the name of an exciting plot. How much more evil can bad parents get than if they're awful to their kids? It's something real, that people can relate to. Yes, some REAL people are going through that, and I am very sorry for them. I do encourage such people to take the actions that you mentioned to save themselves from such horrible treatment. But this is a STORY...Riku will go above and beyond it, he will be saved, even if his parents never go to jail for it. One thing you have to understand is fear. Fear rules us. It's the reason for nearly everything we do. It's the reason why we _brush our teeth_. XD (fear of getting cavaties and having nasty teeth. Fear has many forms and intensities.) What I'm trying to say is, if he had reported them, he would be taken away and be put up for adoption. And let's face it, the evil that you know can be better than the evil you don't know. At least in theory. And Sora's mother would NOT have adopted him, as you will soon find out.

Sorry for all that, guys. Read on! P.S. In the next chapter we will FINALLY start doing just a little time skipping.

_She asked the shrink why her son had flipped out like that, why he had acted so unreasonably about something so 'small'._

_And the shrink replied, "Well...what is he afraid of?"_

_Chapter Seven: The 7th Day_

"…Sora…"

_Is someone…calling me? They sound so far away…_

"Hey, Sora…" Riku waited through another moment of the sleeping brunet's soft groaning before shaking him a little more urgently. "Get up already!"

"Wha-!" He shot up, worried pools or blue glancing around in a panic. Deciding that there really wasn't anything to be alarmed about, he socked his friend in his good shoulder weakly. "That's not funny, Riku!"

The silver haired boy quirked a brow. "…what are you talking about?"

"Uh…" When he thought about it, he really wasn't quite sure. Things were still a little fuzzy in his sleep-clouded mind. Sora had come back in when Riku appeared to be asleep, and had fallen out in the chair, cradling his head with his arms on the stiff hospital bed at Riku's side. "Well, you woke me up like it was an emergency! But there's nothing going…on…" He blinked once, only for it to dawn on him that Riku was dressed back in his bloodied clothes and standing at his side. "I missed something, didn't I?"

"Try a lot of things. C'mon, hurry up. We have to leave." Riku made for the window, opening it with his good arm.

Sora stood sleepily and followed, not really grasping the situation at first. "What are you doing, Riku…?"

"Bird watching! What's it look like, Sora? I'm climbing out the window."

Then he got it. "Are you nuts?! This is the third floor!"

The other turned back to stare at him stupidly. "…don't you know? I can fly."

The brunet stared back for the longest time before answering. "…no you can't."

He sighed exasperatedly. "Don't be stupid. We're-" It was then that they could catch a hint of voices right outside the door to their room. "Shit. Hurry!" He shoved the curtain aside and practically pushed the hesitant brunet out the window.

Sora latched onto a tree branch tightly and hissed. "Riku! That hurt, you jackass!"

His friend followed suit, leaping out of the window and grabbing hold of a thick branch. It was only a split second later that he realized how badly he had misjudged the weakness of his injured arm and slipped right off.

"Riku!" The brunet reached for his friend desperately and barely caught a hold of the front of the other boy's shirt. He quickly discovered that it wasn't enough to hold onto and Sora lost his grip on the bark of the tree, sending them both on a terrifying three story fall. Hitting branch after branch broke their fall with the exception of the last four feet. Luckily, it was early enough in the morning for people to generally still be sleeping, so no one was there to witness the heap they now laid in at the base of the tree. "Ugh…I…" Sora shot up, suddenly. "Riku, are you okay?! I'm sorry!"

"Just…wind knocked out…of me…" His hazy eyes stared up through the tree, catching glimpses of sunlight. "…we really did fall out of a tree." He mumbled, still in a bit of a daze.

The younger blinked. "Huh?"

_Fucking karma… _He growled as he attempted to sit up, remembering that they should probably hurry. _Stealing, lying, cheating, jumping out of a third floor window…I guess this is what I get for trying to avoid trouble. Better than the alternative, though._

Sora was bruised but otherwise unharmed. "…?" He then recalled his excuse to the nurse about Riku's accident and covered his mouth as if it were a shocking thought. "…think I jinxed us?"

"No…"

"Really?" Sora jumped to his feet to help the struggling boy, a little relieved that Riku didn't blame him for what had just taken place. _If I had just been stronger, maybe I could have…held onto you._

"If that was it, _you_ should've been the unlucky one."

He instantly felt worse. Not only did he not have the strength to save his best friend, he also ended up smashing him when they landed. "…" Putting an arm around him for support, they limped off down the street as quickly as they could.

* * *

After they had reached a safe distance, Sora broke the awkward silence. "…I'm really sorry, Riku."

He shrugged, attempting to walk on his own a bit more. Although bruised and burned, his legs seemed to do quite well-it was his back that ached. His shoulder still stung-stitched, but not healed. "For what, Sora? You didn't do anything."

"Maybe that's…exactly the problem." He stared off into the distance, brooding it over.

_What's this, all of a sudden? _Riku frowned. "You know…there's only one thing I dislike about you, Sora. Do you want to know what that is?"

He seemed a little offended at the thought, turning to face the other with a slight frown. "What?"

"When you think too much."

Easily tricked into it, Sora scowled. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?! Are you saying I'm stu-"

"I'm _saying_ that every time you think too seriously about something, you depress yourself. And I…can't stand it."

_H-He can't…stand it…? Can't stand…me? _He crossed his arms, looking more like Riku by the second. "So I'm only tolerable when I'm happy, is that it? Well, _excuse _me for being human-"

"Idiot." Riku reached over and ruffled his hair, melting the sour look off his face immediately. "I mean that…I can't stand to see you sad like that, okay?" He rushed the last part, looking elsewhere.

_Don't scare me like that! _Sora smiled a little, staring down at the sidewalk. "You think it was really necessary for us to jump out of the window like that?"

"While you were sleeping like a rock, I heard the nurses whispering. They finally got an answer at the number you gave them, and they were planning to call officers to interrogate us. I guess it was good that the take out place you chose was closed yesterday."

The brunet blushed slightly. "…I was hungry."

Riku quirked a brow. "…only a freak would memorize a number for take out when it's hanging up on their fridge for easy use. We don't even get it often."

"Hey, I-"

"Do you have a pamphlet stashed under your mattress, Sora? Do you dream about it?"

"Shut up! Don't be an-"

"And here I thought all the moans you made at night were because you dreamt of me…I'm hurt."

Sora quickly became flustered, averting his eyes as the scenery became more familiar. "Y-You're the _real_ freak."

Riku smirked., and just like that, the depressing mood was long gone.

_Come to think of it, I still…haven't given him an answer. He's still expecting one, right? About…that?_

"_I'll tell you what, Sora: You figure it out. And when __**you**__ decide, you let me know…because you're the one…who doesn't know what he wants."_

_Does that mean…that Riku knows what he wants? And what is that? He wouldn't care about my answer if he didn't see anything….there, right? _Sora's stomach gurgled, effectively stopping all thought processes. "…speaking of hungry…"

The silver haired teen pulled out his wallet. "…I don't have enough. We'd have to go back to your house-"

"Aw, man! Mom's going to kill me! And you! We're so dead…"

Riku looked pained at the thought. "We better come up with an excuse…" _Heh…could always tell her we fell out of a tree._ "She's at work right now anyway, isn't she? Stopping there for lunch won't hurt. After that, we can go to the play island and come up with a good story while we work."

The brunet blinked. "…work? On what?"

"The raft, obviously."

"Uh…" Sora scratched the back of his head in thought. "I know you hit your head, but…how can we do that if you can't get money?"

"Shut up! My head's fine, but maybe we should check yours, huh? I'm not going to let Kairi stop me!" He frowned, clenching his fists. "Not her, not my parents, and definitely not money! We'll cut down some trees and build it by hand." _I'll never…let her get the best of me! And she's not getting Sora, either!_

_So you really believe that she did it…I'm still not sure…_ "Wouldn't we need a saw and stuff…?"

"The tool shed."

"The tool what?"

Riku sighed. "You don't know it? I guess back when our parents' parents built all the walkways on the play island, they left a box of their tools in the small shed that connects the two sides of the island. I don't know what kind of tools are there, but if we're lucky, it'll have everything we need."

"What if it doesn't…?"

"Since when are you such a pessimist? That's my job."

Sora was slightly taken aback. "Sorry, Riku. I just-"

_Always apologizing. Geez._ He waved it off. "We can always borrow stuff from people in town. We don't have much to offer except maybe favors…I'm sure there's some old lady who could care less what we do with her deceased husband's tools if we water her garden or something…"

"You think so…?"

_I don't know. But…_ Riku dug up some confidence and smirked. "Of course. C'mon, two cute kids show up on their doorstep telling them they want to build a ship and need tools? Any sane person would eat that up."

"You're such a con artist!" Sora shoved him a little. "It's not nice to take advantage of people like that." They had finally made it back to his block, and he couldn't help but think that there's no way he could have carried Riku this far. _All because…I'm not strong enough._ He tried his best to push the dark thought from his mind.

"Oh yeah? You got any better ideas?" When there was no answer, Riku knew he had won. "Besides, my lack of 'nice' never seemed to bother you before. You sound like Kairi!" He tried his best to mimic a stupid sounding girly voice. "'Oh, Riku, stop that! That's not nice! Criminal!'"

The brunet sweat dropped. "I don't think she ever called you a criminal…"

"And your point is…? She thinks it. Don't deny-"

Sora fished a key out of his pocket and unlocked the front door. "Not to say that 'criminal' isn't an accurate description of you…" He barely ducked into the house before Riku's merciless fist could reach his face.

"Oh yeah? And what does that make you?" He stepped inside calmly, as if he hadn't just tried to rearrange Sora's face, and slipped off his shoes before following the wary brunet to the kitchen.

"Well, I'm-"

"A goody-two-shoes? A prude? Or maybe even a _narcissist_?" Riku put his hands to his cheeks in mock admiration. "Your mother will be so proud!"

"Hey! Leave mom out of this you jerk-"

"I know what you are…"

Sora took in a sharp breath as Riku's face was suddenly very close to his. He stared speechlessly into pools of aqua, captivated instantly.

The older slowly brushed his lips against the other's and, sure enough, Sora's eyes fluttered closed. With a smirk he turned his head and whispered in the brunet's ear "Delinquent." Without warning he nipped the younger's ear gently.

Sora jumped back as if he had been burned. "D-Don't do that, Riku! You're such a jerk!"

"So what's good around here?" He opened the fridge as if nothing had happened.

Sora pouted, but if Riku could brush it off, so could he. "Oh, we should call mom and let her know we're okay…"

Riku snickered. "What's all this 'we' stuff? You can go ahead, if you've decided on an excuse. It seems to me that she can't be all that worried, since she still went to work and dear, sweet Kairi isn't here."

_That…makes me feel bad._ Sora frowned a little. "What if they're out looking for us?"

"Then we couldn't very well call them, could we?"

"Maybe we should wait here…"

"Maybe we shouldn't.

"But Riku-"

"Sora. Stop worrying already! I already have it figured out, so leave it to me. Once again, I will save the day! And your ass, since you can't seem to save it for yourself."

He crossed his arms. "Maybe my ass doesn't want to be saved!"

"Well, that would be a shame, because it's quite-"

"_Shut up!_ I don't wanna know!"

* * *

When the sun had nearly set, they had barely managed to cut down two palm trees. It was a lot tougher than they thought it would be, and they had wasted far too much time getting there. It would take several days of hard work if they wanted it to be ready by the festival. They had thirteen days…and Riku couldn't help but feel that that was a rather unlucky number. They had managed to avoid Kairi and the others by staying on the less visited half of the island, but knew they would have to face her when they arrived home. The thought was not pleasing, and they were already the last ones to leave the play island…but they took their time pulling their boats around to the dock and rowing back.

The door opened the instant they approached it and Sora's mother nearly burst into tears as she grabbed the brunet. "Sora! Where have you been?! You scared me to death, I thought something had happened!"

He pried himself loose. "Mom, I'm okay…"

As planned, she noticed Riku's bloodied clothes and gaped in horror. "Something _did_ happen!"

Riku could sense something funny in the air and changed his speech a little. "It's my fault, mom, I'm sorry."

_Fault…?_ Sora frowned. _That's not what we decided on, Riku!_ Maybe he was imagining things, but either Riku was an even more excellent actor than he thought, or the sad look on his face was real.

He continued. "We were screw-messing around, climbing this tall tree…and I fell out. But Sora carried me all the way to the hospital and made sure they took care of me. He was exhausted and fell asleep…so when we tried to call today, no one was home. I'm really sorry…but you should be proud of Sora! He really…saved me…" He trailed off as her face had done the opposite of what he'd imagined. He thought for sure she'd eat it up, her Sora doing something so heroic.

Instead, her face had adopted a stern frown. "…I see. I'm glad you're all right, Riku…"

_But…_

"But…I think it would be best for you to go home tonight and let your parents know what happened. I'd ask you to stay for dinner, but I'm afraid there were some things I wanted to speak to Sora about privately. You understand, I'm sure."

_No…_ "Yes…"

"Good. I'll let Kairi know you're safe as well. She'll be so relieved. Good night, dear."

"…good night…"

With that, Sora was helplessly pulled inside. _Don't go home Riku! Please be okay! Why did you change the story to make me look good…? I'm sorry…_

_Click._

The door was shut in his face and Riku stared at it for some time. _Now what…? I can't go home. They'd kill me for escaping. _Feeling lost, he made his way around the house and settled down below Sora's half open window. It would be too risky to go inside until his friend was alone for the night.

After some time, Riku had begun to doze off when he heard Sora's door open. He was half tempted to get up and knock on the window instantly, but stopped short when he heard another voice that certainly didn't belong to his best friend.

"Your room is so tidy! Um, not that it's unexpected." Kairi smiled sheepishly, turning on the charm she was sure she had.

"So…you wanted to ask me something?" Sora sat down on his bed solemnly, not very into talking right now.

Without permission, she sat next to him. "Well…Riku's still building the raft, huh."

It hit the brunet like a ton of bricks. _Then you really did-_

"I mean, even though we don't want to go. He still seemed…adamant about it the other day. So I was just wondering if he still planned on trying to do it alone."

Riku scowled. _So I was right. And what's more, you're trying to convince Sora not to help me. You sneaky little…_

Sora tried to give her the benefit of the doubt. _It doesn't really sound like she did it. And even if she did, I don't think she intended for that to happen to him. She couldn't have known. Still…_ "He's not alone. I'm helping him."

"But-Sora. You can't _really_ mean to go with him. Look what happened to your mom when you were missing for just a day. If she knew-"

"Only the three of us know about it." He stated. "I…don't know if I'm going. But mom doesn't need to know about it."

Riku nearly made a noise. _Good move, Sora! _

She huffed and crossed her arms. "Disappearing, keeping secrets…you sound like Riku."

"Stop talking so badly about him. Riku is my best friend."

She dropped her arms and sighed. "I'm sorry, Sora…it's just…I know how you feel about me, and I feel the same! I don't want you to go away! Let Riku go by himself if he wants to explore. I don't even care where I'm from! All that matters is that…I'm here now, with you."

Sora really had no idea what she was talking about, and her staring was starting to unnerve him. "Uh-"

It was getting cold outside and Riku dared to peek inside the brunet's room, if only to get a little warmth on his face from the open window. It was known to get a little nippy on the islands at night after a really warm day; the last few weeks of summer were the warmest. He hoped the moonlight would disguise his hair instead of illuminate it.

"And I'd like to make a life here…I want to stay. Isn't that worth more than some silly raft? He'll be back within a week of leaving. I…don't want to spend one day away from you! Stay with me, Sora." She cupped his face and pulled him into a hasty kiss.

Riku suddenly felt weak, and let himself sink back onto the ground. _No…Sora…please push her away…_ He covered his face with his hands. _Push her away god damn it!_ But he couldn't quite seem to convince himself that it was all Kairi's doing-that Sora didn't care for her.

"_Besides…she said she didn't want to go, right? If I took you with…it's no secret that she's got the world's biggest crush on you!"_

"_What's that got to do with anything?!"_

"_Just about __**everything**__!"_

"_It doesn't matter if we don't fucking __**care**__, now, does it?" _

"…_but you do care, don't you? Stop saying bullshit just to make me happy."_

"_I…don't know anymore, Riku…"_

The kiss had been too short to receive any kind of action-negative or otherwise-and Kairi smiled at him before standing. "Just…remember our promise and think about it, okay?" And with that, she left the room and skipped down the halls to her own, happy as a clam. _My first kiss with Sora! He's so loyal, still trying to be Riku's friend. Well, he'll realize it's hopeless. He'll stay with me, I just know it. He drew his hand on the paopu fruit, after all. That means he wants to share one with me so we'll never be apart!_

Sora sighed. _What the heck was she talking about? She 'knows' how I 'feel' about her? Our 'promise'? What?_ He stripped off his shirt and shorts thoughtlessly, too lazy to get into his pjs. He flicked off the light and climbed into bed slowly, the conversation with his mother replaying again and again in his head.

_She had dragged him to her room and shut the door. "Sit down, Sora. Let's talk, okay?"_

"…_about what, mom?" But he sat all the same, wondering if Riku was going to be all right._

"_To tell you the truth, dear…" She sat down next to him, draping an arm around his shoulders. "I've been hearing a lot of disturbing things about Riku lately."_

"_About…Riku? Like what?"_

"_I'm afraid I'm not allowed to disclose these things to you or give any names, as I've been told in confidence. However…"_

"_Are you sure they're __**true**__? Can't you tell me, so I can-"_

"_I'm pretty sure. They come from…reliable sources. However…I don't believe Riku is a bad person. He's always been good to you Sora, and I won't forget that. But I think it would be best…if you two had some time apart for a while. You know, take a breather."_

"_But we-" It didn't make sense to him, not any of it._

"_You can still go play rivals on the little island every day. I just think that…he shouldn't be here every night anymore. I believe that less time together is the right thing for you right now."_

"_But I…" His eyes stung, as if he would burst into tears at any moment. Riku…_

_"Why not spend some extra time with Kairi instead, hm? She's still new to his place and I think she needs a good, trust worthy friend. Riku used to be alone all the time before you befriended him. I'm sure he'd understand the feeling."_

"…_okay." No…damn it, Riku's right. I…can never say no._

"_That's good, Sora. Now let's go eat. I'm famished!"_

"…" _No…I…I'm never letting Riku go!_

Sora turned over and sighed again loudly. _Was it Kairi? I know Riku wouldn't put it past her. Riku…I wonder if he's okay._

Shivering in the night wind, Riku tried-and failed-to suppress a nasty little cough that had come up suddenly.

The brunet blinked before sitting up quickly and whispering into the dark. "…Riku?" When there was no reply, he went passed the window and checked the closet. Finding no one, he intended to go back to bed, stopping suddenly when the wind reminded him of his window's existence. He flung it the rest of the way open and looked left and right. _Huh. No one here…?_ But a sneeze into the quiet night made him jump before he looked down at the source of the noise. "Riku!"

He looked up at the brunet and tried to smirk. "Looks like…you caught me."

"You make a poor stalker." Sora couldn't help but notice how beautiful Riku's silver hair looked in the moon light. He smiled and held out his hand. "What are you waiting for? Get in."

The older guiltily took his best friend's warm hand and stood, climbing in the window slowly. _I feel like such a burden right now…_

Sora had helped him inside, remembering his injury, and had held onto him when they had almost tripped. "You're freezing! Why didn't you say something sooner? What if I had fallen asleep and never heard you?"

"…"

"Riku-"

"Kairi…do you…love her?" His face was shadowed in the darkness of Sora's room and he couldn't be more thankful. _I'm so…pathetic. I knew all along…that this was one sided._

"I…j-just get into bed first, okay? You're gonna get sick…" He touched Riku's arm gently, only to find his hand swatted away.

"Do you?! Tell me the truth, Sora!"

"Shh! Keep it down! If my mom finds out you're here, we'll be in even more trouble than we're already in."

Riku frowned, but slipped off his shirt and kicked off his shoes. _Changing the subject? Still…_ "You're in trouble?"

Sora, fed up with it all, grabbed Riku's hand and pulled him to the edge of the mattress before pushing him onto it. "Don't move."

Although sprawled across the bed, Riku did as commanded and didn't move a muscle. The bed was still warm where Sora had been laying, and it only made him realize how cold he really was.

The brunet dropped a couple of blankets onto his friend and stared for a moment. Snickering quietly, he pushed Riku's legs aside and crawled in next to him. Without warning, the legs came back and draped over his own.

"What-"

"…you told me not to move."

Sora pouted, shoving the legs off again. "Don't be an ass. Your legs are cold!"

"So warm me up…" Riku mumbled, snuggling into the brunet.

Sora let himself be held by strong, but cold, muscled arms, sighing lightly. "I…I don't love her…" _I love…no, I shouldn't…I don't know that. I mean…you'd think…I was just bullshitting to make you happy anyway._

"I'm…glad." Riku whispered into his ear before placing a few light kisses on the boy's neck.

Sora closed his eyes, trying not to frown. He wanted to ask… _Do you…love __**me**__? _But he wasn't sure he wanted an answer. He wasn't ready for one. "Mom…doesn't want you here anymore. She said…she's been hearing things about you and…she doesn't think it's good for me…"

"That's nice…" He yawned. _Always knew she hated me…_

Riku fell asleep easily enough, but Sora was awake for hours to come. _It doesn't matter what she says. I won't let her keep us apart._


	8. The 19th Day

Long time no see, guys! Erm…I suppose an apology is in order, as per usual? Sorry again! -bows- A lot's been going on, which, also as per usual, will be located in my profile, so I won't waste your time with it here. This one has been 90 percent finished for like…a long time. BUT, I had this paper where I had been taking notes while I replayed the game and um…I kind of…lost it. Haha…yeah. Sorry about that. I looked everywhere, damn it. I could have sworn that it was in a notebook-…wait a second…strawberry notebook! -opens drawer, opens said notebook- …wow. No shit. Curse my goldfish memory span! If I had just remembered that it was in a notebook, not on a scrap of paper…ugh. I weary myself, guys. I really do.

Anyway, on to more important things! I don't know what the hell's wrong with the format on FFN today. It's not working...it's putting "th Day" of the chapter title on the next line, the scroll buttons aren't working properly and keep going back to the top of the document and stuff...whatever. Last chapter was only day 7...and now we've jumped to 19?! Well, sort of. It starts off as the next day, and talks about the passing days, but most of the chapter is about the 19th day. Also, note that I added in just the chorus from the song Simple and Clean. Well, wouldn't it be weird if I didn't? As corny as it may seem. I put the chorus from the English version, which is what most of you probably know, but also the translation of the Japanese version's(Hikari's) chorus, just in case some of you like it better. As for me, this is one series I like best in English.

Well, hope this chapter helps you guys to forgive me. It's almost ten pages. Now I have to go reply to your reviews, which you guys probably forgot that you even wrote. Sorry again. -bows- (Oh hey! As a side note, I noticed that a lot of people seem to get away with putting smut in their fics…am I like, the only one who follows the rules anymore? How do these people get away with it? Shit, I got a fic deleted once because of LYRICS…all my shit would probably disappear if I dared to include the smut instead of giving it by request…wtf.)

And just real quick, a shout-out to Chubby-King-Chocobo who left a lovely review, but no way for me to reply! This chapter is for you. Thanks so much!

* * *

Chapter Eight: The 19

th Day

The next morning, Riku was promptly kicked out of bed, hitting the floor with a thump. He was about to climb to his feet and beat the shit out of the person attached to the offending foot, when a female voice reached his ears.

"Oh, Sora! You're already awake!" Kairi blushed, seeing her crush in only his boxers for the first time.

"Uh-yeah." The blanket had followed Riku down, so the brunet had sat up as she entered, as if he was in the process of crawling out of bed. He didn't think it would be the end of the world if the silver haired teen was found there, but figured it best to avoid anything suspicious for now.

She smiled widely, looking him over. "You're so handsome, Sora."

Not used to receiving such compliments, he felt his face heat up, disliking the extremely awkward situation he now found himself in. "Um…thanks…I guess…"

Riku rolled his eyes from his place on the floor, briefly imagining what her reaction would be if he had suddenly popped up and said 'Hey, Sora, where did you throw my boxers last night? I know it was in the heat of the moment, but you found _yours_. Help me find mi-oh, hello, Kairi.' It would be glorious, he was sure of that, but his best friend would probably never forgive him for it. _But then Sora would insist that it was all a joke…and Kairi would easily believe it. I guess…maybe our relationship hasn't made any progress after all._ _No…I don't want to believe that. Because Sora doesn't lie, and last night he told me…_

"_I…I don't love her…" _

_Still, that doesn't mean that he loves…_

The redhead giggled. "Breakfast is almost ready, Sora."

"I'll be there in a minute." The brunet answered hastily. Another smile and she was gone, causing him to sigh in relief. "Crisis aver-" Before he knew what was happening, a hand had grabbed his wrist and given it a good yank, pulling him right off the bed. "…ted?" Sora finished with a blink, staring into aqua eyes that were alive with mischief.

He tried so hard not to laugh at that cute, innocent face. Without warning, he kissed the unsuspecting brunet fully, his tongue easily gaining access to Sora's hot mouth. There was no resistance whatsoever, and it pleased Riku greatly. He had been pissed when he heard Kairi trying her hardest to suck up to the shorter boy, and he needed confirmation that Sora was still, _technically_, his; that he was still wanted. Loved? He wasn't sure about that, but would worry about it at a later time. He had promised himself that he would let his best friend take all the time he needed to figure it out. _Sora will tell me when he decides._ He reminded himself. _But if he has to think about it for so long, isn't the answer obvious?_ A little nagging voice in the back of his head whispered. _He just doesn't want to hurt you. He'll be 'thinking about it' forever._ He forced the thoughts away. _But…he's kissing me right now._ He ran hesitant fingers though soft, chocolate brown spikes before regretfully pulling away, taking Sora's hand in his own. _You're not just 'handsome'…you're gorgeous. That's what I want to tell you, but…_ "…Sora, I-"

He gasped suddenly. "Riku, you have to get out of here! She could come back looking for me any second now!" Then he scrambled to his feet before holding out his hand to his best friend.

Suppressing a sigh, Riku took the offered hand and got to his feet before making his way to the window. "I'll wait for you on the play island." Only half way out the window, his arm was held onto tightly. Glancing back up, the brunet looked like he might burst into tears at any moment. "…Sora?"

"…" _I…_

He tried to smile. "What's with that face? Hurry and eat, then we can go work on the-"

"Riku…what are we gonna do now?"

"…what do you mean?"

Troubled blue eyes stared at the floor. "You can't stay here anymore, but…you can't go home, either. I'm just…worried…I mean, I don't know what we can even do-"

Riku pulled him down into a short, needy kiss before mustering up a more convincing smile. "Heh, what did I say about you and thinking too much?" At the brunet's blush, he grinned slightly. "I don't know what's gonna happen now, but…we'll think of something. Don't worry. It'll be alright, Sora. I promise."

Letting a relieved smile creep onto his face, the brunet finally let him go. "…okay. I guess we'll talk about it later."

The silver haired teen nodded before climbing the rest of the way out the window. _We have…to make it. The only thing I'm worried about is Kairi. I have a bad feeling that she's going to do her best to ruin this._

Sora waved at his best friend's retreating back until he was out of sight and then proceeded to dress. _I…believe you, Riku_ _._

* * *

After almost being caught in Sora's room that morning, Riku had set up camp on his paopu island. The brunet had worried about him like hell at first, even sneaking out in the middle of the night to check on him, but had warmed up to the idea after the first few days. He kept clothing and blankets in a small abandoned tree house on the less used half the of the island. There were few breakfasts to speak of, but it was easy to go back to the main island with Sora for lunch, since the brunet's mother was always at work in the afternoons. Sora would sneak back to the play island late every night to bring his best friend some of the dinners his mother made. Sleeping under the stars, breathing the fresh, salty air, and a large fire to keep him warm till morning came…Riku concluded that it really wasn't all that bad; except that he got little to no physical contact out of the object of his affections. As much as he would have liked to try out a few sleepovers, the boy was adamant about being careful and making sure no one found out that he was gone.

Everyday, the silver haired teen worked hard to make them a really strong raft that would carry them safely to new worlds. Sora tried hard to ignore Kairi's little advances, relentless as she was. Often times, he'd get pulled away in the middle of helping Riku make the raft, and today was one such occasion: the day before the festival. The day before they were to set sail

"Sooora! Come with me to the docks, pleeeease?"

He gave his best friend a pleading look, but Riku carried on as if it wasn't even happening-he always did. _Why don't you say something? I know you hate this, so why not stop her? Are you…mad at me? _"Um…okay…" They made their way there in relative silence.

Kairi sat down at the end of the dock and patted the spot next to her.

The brunet sighed quietly and took the seat, dangling his feet off the edge. "So…what is it, Kairi?"

"You're really going with him, aren't you? The end of summer festival is tomorrow night…but you won't be taking me, will you?" It definitely sounded like an accusation.

"We had offered that you could come, Kairi…" He tried, somewhat defensively.

"And I don't _want_ to! You aren't…really going to leave me just to go nowhere with _him_, are you?"

"I…"

"Riku's changed, Sora. He isn't your best friend anymore. So if you're really set on going…then _we'll_ go, just the two of us!"

Sora blinked. "_What_? I can't just leave Riku-"

"I was only kidding." She insisted. "Still…you know you can't go, right? You'll get in so much trouble. And without you…I…" Kairi paused a moment before continuing. "You know, I was a little afraid at first, when I saw your drawing on the cave wall that said that you accepted my feelings. But now…I'm ready."

_Ready…? For what?_ They sat in silence a while longer before Sora stood. _Better yet, what drawing? I didn't do any drawing…what is she talking about? This is too weird._ "I…I should go back. Riku needs my help."

And then, seemingly out of no where, she exploded. "It's always Riku, Riku, Riku! What about _me_, Sora?! I thought…that you…" She bit her bottom lip as if trying to prevent herself from crying. "Tell me the truth: do you…do you love me, or not?"

He gulped, but decided to answer honestly. "…no."

"So it was all just a joke, is that it? Laugh at the new girl with your _best friend_?!" She spat, seething. "You're so cruel, Sora! I can't believe…I can't believe I really thought that you wanted to share a paopu fruit with me tomorrow at the festival! I can't believe that I fell for it!" Tears were streaming down her face as she got to her feet and ran off, most likely to Selphie. _That raft won't take you anywhere…I'll make sure of it. Everyone will know…what Riku has done to you. I hate to do this, but you won't get away with tricking me!_

"Uh-Kairi-wait!" But it was too late, she was gone. The brunet scratched the back of his head, confused. "Share a paopu fruit? Drawing…on the cave wall? What?" Making a quick decision, he jogged down the pier and made a right, heading for their childhood hideout. It took him a moment to spot the drawing that she had spoken of, and he stared at it for quite some time. He recalled that, many days ago, she had drawn him, and so, in turn, he had drawn her beside him. It was the day of their big sword fight, where he accidentally injured the silver haired teen…it was the day that some really big problems began. _But…maybe our problems started before that. Maybe they started the very day that we found Kairi here._

"_Hey, Riku…what's it like, being with someone?"_

"_What, like dating someone?"_

"_Well…"_

"_You're thinking about that new girl that was washed up on the shore today."_

_Riku was offended right away…which makes sense if he…likes me…_ Sora shook his head furiously. _If. __**If**__ he does. Still, that would account for his attitude. I wonder…if I hadn't asked that question, would we ever have started being…um…more than friends? Would we have just stayed the way we were forever? Come to think of it, Riku was mad the next night, when I accused him of liking her…I figured he got angry because he didn't like being called out on it, but…have I been wrong, all this time? Have you been trying to tell me something these past few weeks, Riku…? Maybe I really __**am**__ oblivious…_ He sat down and examined Kairi's drawn hand, which was holding the paopu fruit. He couldn't be sure, but it seemed like her kind of drawing. Someone else, however, had added his hand to the star shaped fruit. It seemed like the person tried to mimic the way she had done the first hand, but pretty much failed. Sora didn't draw hands with only three fingers, either. He wasn't an artist, but even his stick figure pictures as a small boy had five digits present. No, someone else had clearly done this, and on purpose. Someone _wanted_ Kairi to find it and jump to conclusions. _Who the hell would do this…? Tidus? Maybe…I can't believe all this trouble with her was caused by a misunderstanding! I have to tell Kairi!_

Just then, a low, smooth voice chuckled, causing Sora to nearly jump out of his skin.

"W-Who's there?!" He whipped around, seeing no one. The cave was kind of dark, but his eyes should have grown accustomed to it by now. He blinked a few times, wondering if maybe he had been hearing things. Suddenly, there was an intense chill in the air as a small light seemed to come alive next to him. The bare wall began to glow before a wooden door with golden trim appeared beside him. "What the…"

The mysterious voice spoke then, proving that it certainly was not just some crazy part of his imagination. "I suppose I have come…to see the door to this world."

"…" Looking left and right, the brunet still saw no one. "…what door? This…door?" _It wasn't here a second ago! It's never been here before! Who the hell is this guy? Did he…make this door thing?_

"It seems that you do not yet know what lies beyond the door." He offered, instead of answering the question.

Sora narrowed his eyes, not quite sure why he was still talking to this stranger. Was it an adult? Someone's parent or older sibling playing a prank? Tidus' creep of a father, perhaps? "Well, how could I? It just got here…and look, it doesn't even have a handle. I probably can't even open it."

"This world has been connected. Tied…to the darkness." There was a low, hollow laugh. "There is so very much to learn. After all, you understand so little."

He frowned, knitting his brows together in confusion. _What the hell is this guy talking about? __**Connected**__? Tied to __**darkness**__? What?_ "Look, I don't know what you're trying to say, but…I know there's a lot I still have to learn. So, I'll go out and experience all of it. Then I can understand-"

At length, a robed figure seemed to step out of the shadows, his face hidden. "A meaningless effort."

He backed up quickly, towards the exit, still watching the man's every move.

"Because one who _**knows**_ _nothing_ can _**understand**_ _nothing_."

"So…once I know, then I can understand…right?" Without waiting for the answer, the brunet turned and sprinted out of the cave, not stopping until he reached paopu island, crumpling into a heap at his best friend's feet. "R-Riku…"

The silver haired teen just continued tying on their second-to-last log. He was still ticked that Sora continued to go to 'talks' with Kairi, not to mention that he'd been gone a whole twenty minutes this time. Although his calm face didn't show it, he had imagined every horrible scenario that could have come of it in that time-including being told that he would have to leave on his own.

"Riku!" Sora tried again, latching onto the yellow and blue shorts. "I-I was in the cave and there's this weird guy and this creepy door and-"

He frowned. "What are you talking about?"

"Just-c'mon!" The brunet struggled to his feet, still trying to catch his breath. He wordlessly grabbed the other's pocket knife out of the sand and jogged back in the direction he had come from, knowing Riku would follow. They entered cautiously, but it was only a few moments before he realized that there was nothing there. No door, no suspicious character. _I couldn't have…__**imagined**__ all of that?_

"Well?" He insisted, crossing his arms.

"I…I don't know where they went." Sora reluctantly admitted.

"They?"

"The door and that guy."

Riku rubbed his temple as if he was getting a headache. "So there was a _guy_…carrying around a _door_?"

"Yes! Well, no! He wasn't carrying it. It was…um…part of the…wall…" He trailed off at his best friend's incredulous look.

_Sora doesn't lie._ He reminded himself. Normally, he would believe anything his short counterpart said. This, however, was just a little too strange. "…maybe you've been out in the sun too long today. These walls are solid rock." He demonstrated by tapping it a few times with his fist. "You couldn't put a door in if your life depended on it, much less remove it that easily and leave nothing behind…"

"I know what I saw, okay?!"

He sighed. "Okay, I'll humor you. What did this guy look like?"

"I…" Sora hung his head, defeated. "He wore some kind of hood. I couldn't see his face." He snapped his head up and pointed at the bare stone. "But a door without a handle appeared right there, and then this guy came out of the shadows, saying all kinds of weird shit-"

"Why were you here in the first place?" Riku tried, hoping for an answer that made sense.

"Oh, well, that's because-" Sora's eyes nearly popped out of his head as he remembered why he had been there at all. "Riku! Someone set me up!"

He stared for a moment, exasperated. "…is this still about that guy and his handleless door…?"

"No, not that! Look-" He grabbed his best friend's hand and tugged him a few more feet before letting go and pointing an accusing finger at the picture. "Someone else drew that hand!" He announced.

"…just the hand?" Riku inquired suspiciously, quirking a silver brow. _I don't like where this is going…_

Sora smacked his bare shoulder. "Shut up, that's not the point! Kairi asked me…if I love her…" He continued quickly when he saw the slightly shocked expression on the other's face, remembering that it had been asked of him once before by his best friend. "And I said no, because…well, I don't. But…then she said something about us tricking her and about a drawing on the wall. So…I came to check it out."

Riku looked down at the picture again, a deep frown set into his face. _I __**really**__ don't like where this is going…_

"She thought I wanted to share a paopu fruit with her tomorrow, Riku. I have to tell her that I didn't do this."

He shook his head. "Don't bother." _I have a feeling she won't believe you._ "I'd bet you anything that she's planning revenge, just like how she told my parents that I was stealing from them."

"…" _Even I had kind of suspected, but you still sound completely convinced. You don't think…that she'd tell my mom…?_

"At any rate, it doesn't matter. We have to put the finishing touches on the raft and…_acquire_ some provisions. You should probably just sleep out here tonight, to be safe. Then we can set sail first thing in the morning-"

"You know I can't do that, Riku…this'll be the my last time seeing mom for, well, who knows how long? Besides…I really think we should try and clear things up with Kairi…you know, before we go…"

He crossed his arms again, making his way to the cave's exit. "…do what you want. Either way, go get us some lunch. We can't afford to stop working today."

Sora sulked, slowly following him out. "…okay." But on his way to the boats, he instead went up the small path, hoping that Kairi would be with the others up there. However, he was quickly intercepted by Selphie. "Hey, is Kai-"

"What do _you_ want?" She narrowed her eyes. "Come to make things worse? Come to laugh?"

"No, I-Selph, this is all a misundersta-"

"Sure it is. So where's your gay partner in crime?" She continued to glare, clearly not about to move.

"…gay?" Then it dawned on him and he looked down sadly. "…oh. I see…" He couldn't figure out how Kairi had known anything about that, deciding that they must have been careless at some point. However, the fact that she would tell everyone at the drop of a hat before asking him about it first…it just made him sad. _I guess…this is one of those times where Riku would say 'I told you so!'…no, he'd be pissed if he knew about this. I guess you were right all along. Then she __**is **__the one who told your parents. And she's probably planning to tell my mom now. I'm sorry that I doubted you, Riku…_

The usually bouncy girl's expression softened. "Look, Sora…I…I want to believe you. Really. You guys have never been anything but nice to me all of these years and, well…I don't care if you're gay. It doesn't bother me." She paused before mumbling. "It's actually kind of…um…cute." She coughed once, as if to cover it up.

He blinked, not really sure what the hell was going on. "Then you need to let me tell her that this-"

Selphie shook her head, cutting him off. "I can't do that. I promised I wouldn't let either of you through, no matter what. You're lucky it's my turn to watch; Tidus and Wakka seemed like they were really to attack you guys. Kairi begged them not to. How could you make her cry like that?" She put her hands on her hips. "You should be ashamed of yourself."

"I'm telling you, you have it all wrong!" He wailed. "There's an explanation for all of this…"

She seemed to think it over before shaking her head again. "Just…leave it alone for now. Try again later. A girl's heart is a delicate thing, and now Kairi's is broken. I'm sure she'll want to hear what you have to say, just…not right now. Sorry, Sora."

He let his shoulders slump, dejected. "…okay. Thanks, Selph…"

"I'm sorry…" She whispered as he walked away at a slow pace. He continued to turn it over in his mind all the way to his house.

* * *

When the brunet returned, however, his best friend was no where to be found. "That's weird…I thought he stayed behind so he could work. Maybe he went to get something?" He muttered to himself, heading for the makeshift door that lead to the less used half of the island. _We should eat over there anyway, maybe in his tree house. Cause, except for the paopu tree, we cut down all the shade._ He laughed a little at the thought, stepping out onto pure white sand. He looked around, but with Riku still no where to be seen, he started across the wooden planks that they used for their best races.

Taking a few steps back, preparing to jump across one of the large gaps they had made, a strange sound tickled sensitive ears and he stilled immediately. Sora looked around again, still seeing no one, but he could now hear it clearly: humming. Someone was humming a familiar pop tune that he couldn't remember the name of…and that someone was unmistakably Riku. Crouching down, he looked over the edge of the bridge and his breath caught in his throat.

The silver haired teen was standing beside the flow of clean spring water that came from the top of the island to a small pool by their cave and finally out into the ocean there. He was completely naked, humming quietly while he soaped up his wet hair. Truthfully, he had been really hungry, and after five minutes of waiting for Sora to return, he could no longer stand it. The events of the day bothering him greatly, he decided to shower while he waited and attempt to clear his head. So he had picked the last song he'd been lucky enough to hear, having no radio or television since he'd left Sora's house, deciding to distract himself with it. Unfortunately, he could only remember a couple of the words, mostly the chorus, so he lamely hummed it. It wasn't exactly his kind of music, but he enjoyed the possible, very open-to-interpretation, meaning behind the chorus.

_When you walk away,_

_You don't hear me say_

"_Please…oh, baby, don't go."_

_Simple and clean is the way_

_That you're making me feel tonight…_

_It's hard to let it go._

Sora could only gape down at him, utterly entranced. The way his silver hair sparkled when wet, his soft, smooth voice carried on the wind as he carefully rinsed the soap from his hair, the way his muscles moved under his pale skin…standing there, looking so unconsciously beautiful. The brunet continued to look him up and down as suddenly everything seemed calm in the world…even Riku, himself, who was never really happy, seemed to be at peace with life. It was more than simply serene; Sora found it absolutely fascinating. The only thing that wasn't calm, he realized, was him. His heart was pounding in his chest and his boxers began to feel slightly confining as he attempted to swallow the lump that had formed in his throat. He had felt like this when Riku had kissed him, touched him, been on top of him…but simply by _looking_ at him? Since when? _Well…he is, uh…naked…_ His mind reasoned as a hefty blush crept onto his cheeks. They had never really seen each other naked before, and aside from the two times that they stripped down to their underwear, they had never come close.

Gulping again, the brunet slowly backed up, tearing his eyes away at last. _It's only normal that he should have to shower…I'm being such a pervert!_ He shook his head, taking another step. _Creak._ He froze.

Riku's ears caught it instantly since he no longer had water rushing over his head. Without hesitation, he called out. "Is that you, Sora?"

_Fake it till you make it, fake it till you make it…fuck!_ "Oh, Riku! Is that you?! I didn't know if you were here or not! I have lunch! Let's eat in your tree house, okay?! We cut down all the trees, after all! Ha ha!" His voice had come out slightly higher pitched and strained. He wanted to kick himself, but instead sprinted all the way to said tree house, not stopping even once, sure that his face was beet red.

* * *

About five minutes later, Riku joined him there, in only a towel. He grinned a little when Sora hastily looked away, as if he found the wall extremely interesting. _Well, well. What's going on here?_ Not being one to let good opportunities slip away, he dug out his fresh clothes before speaking. "Sora."

"Yes?!" He looked toward his best friend, out of habit. After all, wasn't it rude not to look at people when they were talking to you?

Before answering, he dropped his towel without warning. "What's for lunch today?"

Blue eyes as big as saucers, the brunet turned away again, sputtering. "I-uh-well-it's-uh…n-nothing special! Just…um…you know…those…uh…things…with the uh…bread…and…stuff…like that…"

He dressed quickly, a little confused. "You mean…sandwiches?" There was no answer. Sitting down close to Sora, he noted how the boy inched away. _Hm._ It was curious indeed. He happily threw his left arm around his best friend's shoulders casually, as if oblivious to the tension in the air, unpacking the food with his other hand. "You seem pretty…jittery."

The brunet almost felt dizzy, the nail having been hit on the head by the blunt hammer of doom. "What-me? No way. Just hungry!"

Riku arched a fine sliver brow, obviously not buying it. He briefly wondered about any possible repercussions he might receive for guessing before pushing those thoughts aside. Pulling Sora closer, he spoke in a low voice. "Were you enjoying the show?"

The brunet practically choked on his sandwich. "Wha-I-you-that was-"

"Don't watch me next time." He stated coldly.

Sora looked down, his nervous heart sinking like a ball of lead. _I…_But suddenly, soft fingers ghosted over his neck.

"…you should _join_ _me_, instead." He purred suggestively.

The younger's eyes widened instantly, completely shocked.

Riku covered his mouth for a moment, trying to stifle his laugh, before pressing his lips to Sora's cheek in an affectionate kiss. _I haven't touched you in so long…_

He jumped as if he'd been burned. "D-Don't do that!"

"You know…if you don't finish that sandwich soon, it's likely to disappear, right out of your hands."

"And into your stomach?" He snickered, getting a handle on himself.

"You got it." The older couldn't help the sly grin that came over his face. _Soon, it will be just the two of us, together like this…there won't be any Kairi or parents…just us. Sora and I. Even if he…never decides…_ The grin fell, replaced by a straight line. Still, his eyes shown a certain kind of sadness. _As long as he still accepts me…I don't need to hear those three little words._ He told himself. _Who needs…something like that? As long as I can hold you, as long as I can touch you…I don't need it. I…don't…_

* * *

Sora laid in bed, waiting for maybe another half hour to pass. By then, everyone was sure to be sleeping, so he could bring food to Riku like he always did. Kairi had gotten back to the house before him, but everything seemed normal and pleasant at dinner. _Maybe Selphie told her what I said. Maybe…she isn't mad anymore?_ But he hadn't been able to build up enough courage to ask her. He supposed it didn't matter, as Riku had said several times that day. Soon they would be long gone and what then? Her feelings wouldn't be a factor anymore, but he still felt guilty.

A sudden flash of lightning quickly followed by a loud clap of thunder made him jump into a sitting position. Looking out his window, extremely dark clouds loomed over the island. "A storm…?" They had had a slight drought the last month with hardly a sprinkle of rain. "Oh no! Riku! The raft! Shit!" He hurriedly tugged his shoes on, forgetting all about food. He paused on his way out of his room, suddenly having the urge to open his drawer and take out his most prized possession. He wrapped it in a thin red bandana, to protect it from water, and stuffed it into his pocket.

By the time he got to his boat, the rain was pouring down, soaking him completely. The thought that Riku had decided to sleep in any number of dry places never occurred to him, since his friend had slept out in the open on paopu island every night. _I hope he's okay…and I hope the wind hasn't carried the raft away! We never tied it to anything, and we already attached the sail…_

When he arrived, he hastily tied up his boat, about to climb onto the dock when he realized something. _Wait a minute…Riku's boat, of course, but…whose boat is this one? _Inspecting it, he found the name carved into it. "…Kairi?" _What's she doing here…?_

* * *

Riku had made it into the cave just as the rain hit. He shook his head a little, letting the water droplets fall from his silver hair. It occurred to him that even if this storm didn't last long, it was likely more than enough to put his fire out. He groaned quietly, thinking how he'd have to build another one; even with the long barbeque lighter he had snitched from Sora's house, it was still a pain, especially with all the wood being soaked. He never chose to sleep in the tree house or their cave-it was simply too cold in there at night. Riku shivered a little, rubbing his arms, feeling the chill already. _I guess Sora probably won't come till the rain stops…_ His stomach made a loud noise in obvious protest. _But I'm so __**hungry**__…_

"…do you fear it?"

The silver haired teen jumped a little, startled, before whipping around. He found himself face to face with the mysterious man that his best friend had told him about earlier. _Sora was right!_ _I…I never should have doubted…who the hell is this creep?_ "…fear what?"

"The darkness." He answered, pointing out into the night.

Wary of turning his back on a potential enemy, he merely turned his head, glancing out towards his paopu island, where the stranger indicated. He saw nothing out of the ordinary at first, until dark clouds seemed to blow away with the wind, revealing a small, black orb in the sky. "W-What the hell…? What is that?!" It seemed to grow larger with every passing moment.

"The door has opened. Are you…afraid?" The taunt was evident in his otherwise emotionless voice.

Unable to help himself, Riku bought into it immediately. "I'm not afraid of anything!"

He chuckled darkly. "It can take you where you seek to go. It can fulfill your every desire and make your dreams come true."

"My…dreams?" _This…doesn't make any sense! What do __**you**__ know about me?!_

"Do not fear the darkness. _Become _the darkness…and it will obey your every command. Go to it now. The strength you desire awaits you there."

Riku felt dizzy as his feet moved forward as if on their own. His vision blurred slightly as he wondered. _What…am I doing? I…I can't…no! Sora! Help…help me…_ But the closer he came to the darkness, the quieter his protests became.

A malicious smirk spread across a smug, hidden face. "Yes, go. Offer up your soul, and in exchange, you will gain an awesome power. A small price to pay for such a gift. Giving up something so useless is hardly a sacrifice." He paused a moment, as if in deep thought. "…yes, I think you'll do quite nicely. _Riku_…you will be the one to open the door for me. The door…to Kingdom Hearts!"

* * *

Sora was running down the pier when a black shadow passed over the ground. Stopping on a dime, he watched as it bubbled up from the sand, taking a strange shape with two glowing yellow eyes. "W-What the hell…?" It sunk back into the ground before coming closer. Not willing to take any chances, he turned to the right and dove off the dock, hitting the sand roughly. Knowing he had no time to spare, Sora climbed to his feet, briefly shaking some of the sand loose. "Ow!" On his leg were three odd scratch marks that clearly couldn't have come from anything other than the strange creature. _What the hell is going on here?_ Before he could think about it further, several more black shadows bubbled up on the sand in front of him. "More of you?!" He took off running, knowing he could never defeat so many with his bare hands, if they even _could_ be defeated. "I don't have time for this! Riku! Where are you?!" Through the rain, he could make out the figure of his best friend, standing out in the middle of paopu island. _What is he…? Oh, the raft!_ But as he got closer, he noted that the raft was clearly not there. "Riku!" He called as he approached. "Where's the raft? What's going on? These black monsters attacked me on-"

"The door…has opened."

But it was said too softly, and the brunet couldn't hear it. "What?"

"The door has opened, Sora! Now we can go to other worlds!"

"W-What are you talking about…?" _Door…? That sounds just like…that weird guy!_

"Once we step through, there's no turning back." He continued, staring up at the blob of dark matter in the sky. "You might never see your mom or your friends again…but this might be our only chance! We can't let something like fear stop us…I'm not afraid of the darkness!" He finally turned to look at his best friend, a strange hardness to his eyes. Silently, he held out his hand to Sora.

"…Riku…" _I'm…__**definitely**__ afraid! What's going on?!_ He took a few hesitant steps forward. _But I…I don't want to be…without you!_ Suddenly, he couldn't move anymore. The darkness, which he had thought to be metaphorical, was latched onto his feet. "What is this stuff?! Riku-"

"…take my hand, Sora. Come with me."

He looked up at the silver haired teen with scared blue eyes. "But…I…"

"Don't be afraid…"

The darkness was climbing up both of them now. Further, further… _How can you be so calm?!_ Still, he reached out, trying desperately to get a hold of Riku's hand. _Whatever happens, I'll be okay, as long as…_ And then, just as their finger tips brushed, everything went black.

* * *

When Sora awoke, he was still on paopu island, but Riku was gone. "…Riku? Hey! Where'd you go?! Riku!" _Was it…just a dream?_ But the strange black orb in the sky revealed the truth: this was reality. Suddenly, more of the black creatures began to crawl under the ground around him, circling. There were at least ten of them, moving like hungry sharks around their only meal of the day. "Damn, it! More?! Get lost!" _Riku…where are you? _"If only I had a sword…maybe I could…" With a shimmer of light, he found a strange blade in his hand. It was shaped like a key, which never would have been his first choice for a weapon. Could it do anything but blunt attacks? _There's only one way to find out!_ As if on cue, three inky black monsters leapt from the ground. With a 180 degree turn to the left, he found that this mysterious weapon sliced through all three, one after another, with ease. Deciding that it was a million times better than being unarmed and helpless, he tightened his grip on the hilt and finished off the small group without much effort.

When he could spare a moment to think again, he looked left, then right. _Riku…where could you be? Are you safe…? That black stuff…the 'darkness'…it swallowed me up, too. But I'm still here. Does that mean you are, too?_

"…_take my hand, Sora. Come with me."_

_Where…? Did you…?_ A deep, painful feeling of loneliness overtook him. "Damn it…damn you, Riku! _We promised we'd go __**together**__!_" But no answer returned to him. _And where's Kairi, anyway? Her boat is here, so she must be, too! I doubt this has anything to do with her, but…why would she come? Revenge against Riku…? But with the storm, it doesn't seem likely…_ A deep, determined frown was set on Sora's face. _I have to find them both and come up with some kind of plan. Like Riku always says, we'll think of something!_ Angry eyes passed over the opening to the cave, or what _should_ have been the opening to the cave. A large, pale door stood in its place. Fighting off a few more monsters, he approached it. _Another door…and my weapon is a key? Tell me that this…is all a dream. I fell asleep waiting to be able to bring Riku dinner. I'd better wake up before he gets mad at me. We're supposed…to set sail tomorrow! To see new worlds…_ Hesitantly, he reached up, pushing the door open. It revealed the very same tunnel he knew.

Entering the cave at last, it only took him a few moments to spot Kairi, who was kneeling in front of the very same drawing they had been fighting over. He sighed lightly, clearing his throat a little before speaking up. "…I thought you might be here, Kairi. But…why _are_ you here? We have a lot to talk…about…"He trailed off as she shakily stood, as if possibly injured. The door was there again, he noted, directly behind her. "…Kairi? Are you okay?"

She turned towards him at length, her eyes seeming hollow and empty. "So…ra…" Before he could answer, the door behind her burst open, sending out a fierce wind. It blew him right out of the cave, throwing him roughly into the sand.

"Argh…ow…" But Kairi had not followed behind him. Was she still inside? Had she been sucked in instead of spit out, somehow? It didn't make any sense. Getting up on his hands and knees, he gasped at the scene before him. Little by little, his world was falling away into oblivion. The ocean, sand, wood, all of it was disappearing. "W-Wha…?" The ground was shaking beneath his feet as he stood. Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw a giant black creature descend from the strange orb in the sky, landing on paopu island. It seemed to be looking for something…or some_one_. "Are _you_ doing this?!" But no answer came, as it didn't even look his way. With a swipe of its hand, the paopu tree was broken free of the island, turning into dust on the harsh wind. "No…" He charged it senselessly. Whether it was responsible for all of this or not, there was no way he was going to just let everything be taken away from him without a fight! "_**Stop**_!"

It noticed him at last as he struck its hand. Said hand was retracted before it began to glow with a strange power. The creature had a massive hole in its chest…in the shape of a heart? Sora shook his head, figuring that that couldn't be right. "Get off of my island!" It responded by smashing its hand into the ground, spreading out another kind of darkness that the little black creatures poured out of. He sliced through one after another as he got to the hand again. Striking it several times, there seemed to be no effect. Making a quick decision, he jumped up onto its large wrist, running up its arm. It clearly didn't like that, releasing a kind of energy from its other hand. Strange, colored orbs came at him and the brunet was only able to dodge a few before slipping off the shadow's shoulder. Out of desperation, he stabbed the key-shaped blade into its back and the creature howled in pain. It tried to reach for him, but couldn't seem to. It decided that the only one way to stop the parasite that was crawling all over it was to drop flat onto its back.

"Woah!" Sora panicked as the beast went down. With few options, he tugged hard on his blade to free it and used his feet to push off of the monster. He hit the ground hard, forcing himself to roll to the side as the ground shook violently when the black creature hit. He had escaped being crushed by merely two or three feet. With its head exposed, Sora charged him, slicing at his face and neck repeatedly.

Thick, black, tar-like blood oozed out all around him as he slashed at the beast, beyond enraged with everything that was happening. _Why did this happen? Why now? Riku and I…were supposed to leave in the morning! To see new worlds! Why couldn't this have waited __**one lousy day**__?! I don't…understand. I don't understand anything!_ He could recall the hidden man's words.

"_This world has been connected. Tied…to the darkness. There is so very much to learn. After all, you understand so little…because one who __**knows**__ nothing can __**understand**__ nothing." _

_That bastard definitely has something to do with this! Maybe, if I go back in the cave, to that door-_ He then realized, too late, that the darkness that had spilled from the monster's wounds was crawling up his legs as if alive. Sora's skin felt like it was on fire as it slowly consumed him. He seemed to be sinking into the ground. Down, down…into oblivion. His struggles slowed as he began to lose consciousness. _Riku…where are you?_

_No matter how well we're doing,_

_I don't believe in us completely._

_But at those sort of times,_

_Because you're by my side,_

_Your light will find me…_

_In the middle of the night. _


End file.
